ICYMI. Scroll down. That’s our governor.
by Ralph Scharnau
Posted with permission
Since assuming the nation’s highest elective office, President Joe Biden has encountered an economy with both good and bad aspects. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that unemployment fell to 3.6% in March, the lowest level in about 50 years. Yet the inflation rate comes in as the worst in 40 years. Record wage gains of 5.6% over the past year, for example, run up against consumer prices that have risen 7.9% annually.
In mid-July of last year, the Democrats introduced in the Senate a measure that aims to reshape the American economy. The $3.5 trillion budget blueprint proposed by President Biden and his party have called it essential to rebuilding the American middle class, lifting people out of poverty, and restoring an economy buffeted by the coronavirus, unemployment, climate change, homelessness, and medical crises. If the main parts of the Biden economic plan are enacted, it would mean a capstone Democratic achievement that fundamentally overhauls Americans’ relationships with work, jobs, and the federal government.
A central feature of the Biden agenda involves passing economic legislation. This includes pushing for Congressional approval of public spending on the nation’s physical infrastructure and jobs. The Biden infrastructure proposals provide public money for repair, rebuilding, upgrading, or replacement. This money includes public funding for roads, bridges, waterways, airports, and railways. And requiring that infrastructure projects use U.S. produced materials like iron and stee will stimulate manufacturing and create millions of jobs. Infrastructure construction work, moreover, provides good paying employment.
Wages figure prominently in Biden’s economic initiatives. He rates as one of the nation’s strongest labor/union advocates. He endorses living wages for all workers.
Consider that the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour has not been increased in 12 years. Wage gains of 5.6% over the past year run up against consumer prices that have risen 7.9% annually. Today many people work two or even three jobs to pay for food, housing, child care, and transportation. The abysmal level of minimum compensation brings economic distress to millions of wage earners. Congressional votes to raise the federal minimum show a deep partisan divide with Democrats in favor and Republicans opposed. Biden and the Democrats call for a $15 minimum. Beyond the controversy over the need to even raise the federal minimum wage itself, other points of party contention include not only the size of the increase but also how to implement it.
Passage of Biden’s economic package in Congress faces a series of challenges, including filling in key details on taxing and spending and holding together a fragile Democratic coalition. But if the plan’s central components become law, it would mean a capstone Democratic achievement that fundamentally overhauls Americans’ relationship with work, school, and the federal government.
All of these economic reforms will require unity among Democrats. The razor thin Democratic majority in Congress could be upended by defections. The real test will come in the Senate where conservatives and moderates wield more power than their more liberal colleagues in the House.
Ultimately, the degree of success of President Biden’s economic program faces two major hurdles. One tests his ability to present a solid front of support from his party. The other tests his ability to fend off attacks from Republicans who characterize his economic spending plans as exorbitant.
The continuing struggle to make the nation’s economy one where all people benefit should remain our goal. With mid-term elections looming, voters will decide the fate of Biden and his Democratic party’s economic agenda.
Ralph Scharnau
April 26, 2022
When it came Friday it was mostly about Reproductive Rights rallies. It has been incorporated into yesterday’s post.
The major issue that Republicans are still dealing with is destroying Iowa’s once highly praised public school system. The plan is to redirect funds to private schools through a “voucher” system.
There is no evidence that private schools would provide education for Iowa’s students. But that is not the driving force behind this transfer of funds from the public to the private sector.
The driving force is to trash Iowa’s public school system. Many of the private schools that will be getting public money through vouchers are religious schools. This should raise concerns among even the most religious citizens.
US officially passes one million deaths from Covid.
From Scientific American of March 29th:
“The U.S. will record one million confirmed deaths from COVID in the next several weeks. This toll is likely an undercount because there are more than 200,000 other excess deaths that go beyond typical mortality rates, caused in part by lingering effects of the disease and the strain of the pandemic. These immense losses are shaping our country—how we live, work and love, how we play and pray and learn and grow.
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“We will see the rippling effects of the pandemic on our society and the way it impacts individuals for generations,” says Nyesha Black, director of demographic research at the University of Alabama. “This is definitely a huge marker in the way we will think about society moving forward—it will be that anchor event.” COVID has become the third leading cause of death in the U.S., after heart disease and cancer.
These deaths have wide-ranging consequences. The effects on children may be the longest-lasting. In the U.S., an estimated 243,000 children have lost a caregiver to COVID—including 194,000 who lost one or both parents—and the psychological and economic aftershocks can have lifetime negative impacts on their education and career.
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Younger people have not escaped. About 240,000 Americans between the ages of 18 and 64 have died, nearly a quarter of the total toll. Among working-age Americans, “we are seeing right now the highest death rates we have ever seen in the history of this business,” said J. Scott Davison, CEO of the insurance company OneAmerica, in late December 2021. “Death rates are up 40 percent over what they were pre-pandemic.” For comparison, he said, “a one-in-200-year catastrophe” would lead to a 10 percent increase, “so 40 percent is just unheard of.”
“People are dying in the prime of life,” says Andrew Stokes, an assistant professor of global health at the Boston University School of Public Health. “They’re leaving families. They were caregivers. When we think about the children left behind, the single moms and single dads who don’t have a partner any longer, that’s going to create inequity that will be experienced for years to come.” Those lost took others to the doctor or checked in on friends or neighbors to make sure they were eating well and their blood pressure or sugar levels were okay. “What does it mean when these ties have been broken?” Black asks. “Can you put these pieces back together?”
The milestone was officially passed Wednesday, but as noted in the SA article that is probably a major undercount. We are by far the leader in deaths world wide with the next closest number of deaths is in India with slightly more than half our number of deaths. India has four times our population.
It is so shameful that our country with its wealth, education and access to vaccinations has had such a miserable response to this life threatening disease. Our response was worse than most 3rd world countries.
The reason for such a miserable response lies at the feet of one person – Donald Trump. But others deserve a lot of blame. Fox News broadcast lies and disinformation about the pandemic 24 hours a day while hundreds of thousands died.
Locally, Covid Kim Reynolds did more than any other to spread the disease as she kept meat packing plants open as workers died and failed to investigate nursing homes as residents died. Iowans should never trust her with any decision making power again. Her only concern was keeping businesses open and pleasing the former president. Iowans were dead last in her concern.
We are far from the end of this pandemic and its effects. Americans are still dying at a rate of near or over 300 a day. Cases are on the rise. Some people were so damaged by their bout of Covid that they may never be able to work again. And we have no idea what the effects of long covid will be or when it may strike. It is the stuff of the scariest horror stories.
And don’t forget that climate change has and will create the environment for even worse pandemics to emerge. First and foremost we need competent leadership who will act responsibly immediately. America can’t handle any more incompetency like Trump or Reynolds. It could kill us all.
graphic with Scientific American article
Interesting juxtaposition isn’t it? As Samuel Alito takes an ax to women’s rights of privacy and the ability to make their own health care decisions comes just before Mother’s Day. Forcing women to become mothers at the possible loss of their health or life seems at odds with the spirit of Mother’s Day. So does the threat of long time jail terms for an attempted abortion.
Also interesting is that the men involved as the partner in making the woman pregnant has apparently no responsibility and will suffer no consequences. And of course as we all know, once the child is born that child and its mother are on their own. Good luck.
Well, we all know what the big story this week was. What else happened?
A) 120 degrees F! Where in the world are they getting these temperatures already?
B) Over in Lebanon, Indiana a Republican candidate wins a primary for county council in spite of what bad circumstances?
C) According to a new book by former Defense Secretary claims Trump wanted to bomb what country?
D) Another stellar jobs report as the Labor Department recorded how many new jobs Friday?
E) Mother’s Day! In ancient literature, who is Lilith?
F) Republicans in the Iowa legislature passed a bill that would let child care providers do what with parents who get child care subsidy from the state?
G) In response to the leaked SCOTUS decision overturning Roe v. Wade the Supreme Court building in DC had what done?
H) In another SCOTUS decision that was announced Monday, the city of Boston was told it was wrong in not allowing what flag to fly on a flagpole in front of city hall?
I) According to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer there will be a vote on what issue next week?
J) What aspect of the Roe v. Wade did Republican leaders focus on after the leak?
K) Jen Psaki is officially leaving as White House Press Secretary. Who will take her place?
L) Cynthia Rosenzweig won the World Food Prize Thursday for her work on what?
M) Mother’s Day! Is the average age of first time mothers in the US going up or down since 2000?
N) What famous comedian was attacked onstage at the Hollywood Bowl last week?
O) Turbo Tax will pay a settlement of $141 million for misleading ads that claimed what?
P) Is the deficit going up or down under President Biden?
Q) What US political leader led a visit to Ukraine last week?
R) 77 years ago today, what major world event took place? (hint: May 8, 1945)
S) Iowa’s primaries are June 7th. When can Iowans start in person voting at their county auditor?
T) Over in Nebraska, Republican governor candidate Charles Herbster has been credibly accused of what crime?
Time to remind folks of the insightful words of Rev. Martin Niemöller as authoritarian government slowly grips the US:
First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
Tip of the hat to http://all-hat-no-cattle.blogspot.com
Answers:
A) India and Pakistan
B) He is in jail because he killed his wife and admitted to it
C) Mexico
D) 428,000
E) First wife of Adam – made from the same dirt so was his equal
F) negotiate so providers could possibly make up the difference between subsidy and what the provider charges. Probably won’t work for the poor.
G) Security fences and barricades installed
H) Christian. After that order the Satanic Church immediately filed a request to fly a flag.
I) Roe v. Wade legislation
J) the leak itself and not the ramifications of the decision. (My money is on John Roberts as the leaker)
K) Karine Jean-Pierre
L) the effects of climate change on agriculture
M) Going up – from 24 in 2000 to 27 in 2020
N) Dave Chapelle
O) Poor people could file taxes for free
Q) Nancy Pelosi
R) VE Day (Victory over Europe) – Germany surrendered
S) May 18th.
T) Groping women – so far at least 8.
For Republicans, the question is never, “Who is responsible?” The question is, “Who snitched?” – Middle Age Riot
Of course we had to show this video with the leak of Justice Alito’s opinion overturning Roe v. Wade: (9 minutes)
“Once you are born you are on your own.”
Don’t you wish the Regressive Party would work as hard to get books into schools as they do to get guns everywhere? Or to give children health care and food instead of poverty and hunger?
Got these THREE notices of rallies for Reproductive Rights in Iowa for Saturday and Sunday:
In Iowa City:
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In Des Moines:
MEDIA ADVISORY – RALLY FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AT THE IOWA STATE CAPITOL TOMORROW
Progress Iowa <press@progressiowa.org>
Fri 5/6/2022 10:00 AM
James Simmons (Dep Press Sec)
(319) 470 – 8268
MEDIA ADVISORY – RALLY FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AT THE IOWA STATE CAPITOL TOMORROW
Des Moines, Iowa — Earlier this week, Politico reported on a leaked Supreme Court draft ruling that would overturn Roe v. Wade, a landmark Supreme Court decision that has provided people in America access to comprehensive healthcare for nearly 50 years. Now, it is more important than ever to stand together to defend our freedoms and access to comprehensive healthcare, including safe and legal abortion, for all Iowans and Americans.
We’re inviting you to join our coalition to stand up for reproductive rights and access to abortion for all Americans.
Title of Event: Rally for Repro Rights
Date of Event: Saturday, May 7, 2022
Time of Event: 3 p.m.
Location: West steps of the Iowa Statehouse, 1007 E Grand Ave, Des Moines, IA 50319
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1609917846039789/
Link to Our Website: reproiowa.com
Brief Description: 59% of Americans and 57% of Iowans support a persons’ right to choose in making their own healthcare decisions and what to do with their own bodies. Overturning Roe v. Wade ignores the values and beliefs of most Americans.
Event Hosts: Great Plains Action Society, Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, Iowa Abortion Access Fund, Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Iowa Coalition for Collective Change, Iowa Harm Reduction Coalition, League of Women Voters of Iowa, Monsoon Asians & Pacific Islanders in Solidarity, New Frontier, No Justice No Peace, One Iowa, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa, Progress Iowa, The Urban Impact Show, Young Women’s Resource Center
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An additional rally in Waterloo this morning:
PRO-CHOICE VOTERS RALLY IN WATERLOO: Grassley has been attacking reproductive freedom since the Eisenhower administration. In his 63 years in office Grassley has left a very destructive path, especially during his time as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee where he was instrumental in the appointment of extreme conservatives to the Supreme and other federal courts as well as the blocking of more moderate and progressive judges. Join Americans for Democratic Action Iowa for a Pro-Choice Voters Rally, this Saturday May 7th at 10am. We will gather outside the Waterloo office of U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley located 531 Commercial Street. Leaked documents indicate that the U.S. Supreme Court is now on the verge of overturning Roe Vs. Wade, stripping away the decades old right of reproductive freedom.
Like many of you, I am livid over the leaked decision that overturns the Roe v. Wade decision. And like many of you I have been turning all sorts of thoughts concerning access to abortion over in my mind. The history, the consequences, the lives of women, why are there no consequences for men? The politicians who have so cravenly used women’s health care as a stepping stone to office.
There are a couple of issues I would like to focus on. First is why is it only women who bear the consequences of having an abortion? She did not become pregnant by herself. As a matter of fact the man should have more responsibility than the woman in this situation. If a pregnancy is terminated and that termination is illegal, then if the woman should be prosecuted then so should the man.
A man can easily stop the pregnancy by using a condom, or more permanently through a vasectomy. Having unprotected sex is not a right I have heard of anywhere. A Mormon mother of 6 spelled this out in a very insightful twitter thread. Here are some excerpts from that thread:
“If you want to stop abortion, you need to prevent unwanted pregnancies. And men are 100% responsible for unwanted pregnancies. No for real, they are. Perhaps you are thinking: IT TAKES TWO! And yes, it does take two for _intentional_ pregnancies.
But ALL unwanted pregnancies are caused by the irresponsible ejaculations of men. Period. Don’t believe me? Let me walk you through it. Let’s start with this: women’s eggs are only fertile about 2 days each month. And that’s for a limited number of years.”
She goes on to explain the simple biology of insemination and the problems with birth control pills that have rough side effects for women. Birth control pills are not simple, are not easy and in many states are not covered by insurance nor are they easily available at women’s health clinics which are being curtailed in many states.
After a discussion of using a condom, she makes this statement:
“So… there are men willing to risk getting a woman pregnant — which means literally risking her life, her health, her social status, her relationships, and her career, so that they can experience a few minutes of slightly more pleasure? Is that for real? Yes. Yes it is.”
At this point it is apparent that men are the ones truly in control of insemination. Yet sex and pregnancy are seldom connected for men. The author suggests consequences for men that might finally get their attention:
“Put a castration law on the books, implement the law, let the media tell the story, and in 3 months or less, tada! abortions will have virtually disappeared. Can you picture it? No more abortions in less than 3 months, without ever trying to outlaw them. Amazing.
For those of you who consider abortion to be murder, wouldn’t you be on board with having a handful of men castrated, if it prevented 500,000 murders each year?”
This twitter thread is about a ten minute read and well worth the time to read. It is a perspective of woman who has a real solution that puts the responsibility where it belongs.
Secondly, if the right to privacy – which according to Justice Alito is the basis of his opinion – means anything to you, you cannot vote for Chuck Grassley. It was his subversion of the constitutional processes for approving SCOTUS justices while Obama was president that led to this gawd awful regressive majority.
And then it was his subversion of that previous maneuvering that led to the confirmation of super regressive and poorly qualified Amy Coney Barrett to the SCOTUS. Not surprisingly those are about the only two accomplishments that anyone can remember from Grassley over FORTY-TWO YEARS in office.
Third, I want to remind folks that women’s reproductive rights as an issue, including abortion and access to abortion, was never much of an issue for nearly a decade after Roe until segregationists saw evangelicals as a large voting bloc they could exploit that could turn elections. Segregationists used abortion and hyped it up to get voters to get into power to attack their segregationist agenda.
From a politico analysis from eight years ago:
Weyrich saw that he had the beginnings of a conservative political movement, which is why, several years into President Jimmy Carter’s term, he and other leaders of the nascent religious right blamed the Democratic president for the IRS actions against segregated schools—even though the policy was mandated by Nixon, and Bob Jones University had lost its tax exemption a year and a day before Carter was inaugurated as president. Falwell, Weyrich and others were undeterred by the niceties of facts. In their determination to elect a conservative, they would do anything to deny a Democrat, even a fellow evangelical like Carter, another term in the White House.
But Falwell and Weyrich, having tapped into the ire of evangelical leaders, were also savvy enough to recognize that organizing grassroots evangelicals to defend racial discrimination would be a challenge. It had worked to rally the leaders, but they needed a different issue if they wanted to mobilize evangelical voters on a large scale.
By the late 1970s, many Americans—not just Roman Catholics—were beginning to feel uneasy about the spike in legal abortions following the 1973 Roe decision. The 1978 Senate races demonstrated to Weyrich and others that abortion might motivate conservatives where it hadn’t in the past. That year in Minnesota, pro-life Republicans captured both Senate seats (one for the unexpired term of Hubert Humphrey) as well as the governor’s mansion. In Iowa, Sen. Dick Clark, the Democratic incumbent, was thought to be a shoo-in: Every poll heading into the election showed him ahead by at least 10 percentage points. On the final weekend of the campaign, however, pro-life activists, primarily Roman Catholics, leafleted church parking lots (as they did in Minnesota), and on Election Day Clark lost to his Republican pro-life challenger. (Ed. note: Roger Jepsen)
Finally, having overturned this so-called “settled law” what else will be in their list to “fix?” The age of the six extremely regressive justices range from three in their early 70s to three in their 50s with Barrett just short of 51. That means they will be singing together for another possibly ten to fifteen years as presently composed.
So what else will they go after? Most pundits say gay marriage since it was also decided on ‘privacy.’ Others pick Griswold v. Connecticut, the decision that allowed sale of birth control to married women. Also a privacy case. But what about the interracial marriage case of Loving v. Virginia?
And what says it has to be a case in the privacy area? In the next ten years I fully expect that Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and any form of federal health insurance (Obamacare) to be on the chopping block. Fasten seat belts, it is about to get bumpy.
Goldwater tried to warn us
FWIW… Starts at 20:22
I don’t really like to just dump negativity out there. But it seems lately that the whole world is freely dumping their negativity everywhere you look in an attempt to make themselves feel better so here’s mine. Deal with it. I have nothing positive to say today so stop reading if you’re looking for inspiration.
I always hate it when people and pundits make declarations like, “this is the new normal,” “[insert bad thing] is here to stay” or “it’s only going to get worse” or “Trump (or some other bad thing) isn’t going anywhere” and the one I hate the most “Like it or not….” So here is my annoying declaration: Like it or not we are going back. Everyone should just stop pretending so a real fight can ensue, not just pissing and moaning on social media like it’s just another day.
Like everyone else I’ve been reading/seeing/hearing the screaming and crying in the media now that the memo has leaked about what SCOTUS is going to do – overturn Roe v. Wade. So here you all go, welcome to my meltdown.
It doesn’t look good. No matter how much Elizabeth Warren and Vice President Kamala Harris and feminists around the country send out rallying cries of “We’re not going back!” it appears we are indeed going back. No matter how many logical arguments you find or post on Facebook and Twitter, they do not matter and will not change anything. As usual it is too late to plan a fighting strategy now. All the wailing and gnashing of teeth that is going on in the anti-social media right now cannot stop the corrupt, lying, Republican appointees on SCOTUS from turning the United States of America into a third world country or so it seems.
So what happens next? Probably nothing except the ongoing erosion of democracy. And that is my most cheerful thought that I have for today.
But hey if you still have some fight in you go for it.
And if you really want to get psyched up, disgusted and infuriated enough to take some kind of action watch this to get a glimpse of how things will be in Iowa. It’s from 2018. This idiot is still in office. And he’s not going anywhere.
