Who Wants to Read About Palin?

I am absolutely floored to see that the new book about Sarah Palin is a best-seller on many new book lists. Why in the world do people want to read this book? There can't be that many hard-core Palin fans out there right? Is it more that urge to stop and stare at the traffic accident? This woman was an absolute embarrassment to women, regardless of political affiliation, everywhere when she was on the campaign trail. I simply cannot believe that anyone will give her the time of day let alone $28.99.

Congress Protects Gays

Hooray! Congress has finally acted to expand the Hate Crimes Act to include crimes based on sexual orientation. Can I just say, once again (no dead horse jokes here), that this is the civil rights issue of our times?

Get Well Soon Justice Ginsburg

Here's hoping that one of my favorite Supreme Court justices, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, is on the mend at last. She's been hospitalized repeatedly in the last few months, and even fell ill in her own chambers last week. At least we have a Democrat in office who could choose her replacement, but I would far rather see the 76 year-old stay on the court. Her sense of law, and of history, are amazing.

"So that's the dissenter's hope: that they are writing not for today but for tomorrow."

To-Do Over Obama

I just had to share my shock and amazement that the to-do over the Obama speech to kids actually infected my school. It seems that the talking heads on TV succeeded in stirring up trouble, and there were enough parent phone calls to create administrative concern. Each teacher had to register if they intended to show the speech, and parents got an email message letting them know that they could have their child excused. Then, each teacher got a list of kids who were to be sent out while the speech was on. All that organizing and agonizing, and what do you think happened on speech day? Three kids went to the library instead of watching. Three.

Politicking

In case you happen to care, here is the response from Senator Murray's office. Some names have been changed to protect the guilty.



Dear Mrs. Totheworld:

Thank you for writing me to share your thoughts on health care reform. It is good to hear from you.

Health care reform is one of the most critical issues facing our nation. Our current health care system is unstable and unsustainable. Too many people do not have health care coverage and many of those who have coverage are worried about losing it in this uncertain economy. Businesses and families are finding it harder and harder to deal with increasing health care premiums.

In addition, Washington state family budgets cannot sustain the continual rise in health care costs and hidden taxes in the form of rising premiums to cover the uninsured. If we do not get health care costs under control, local, state and federal government budgets will have to take on the weight of rising health care costs. While health care reform may require an initial cost investment, I strongly believe that it will pay off in the long term and the cost letting the system become more unstable is much greater. Without reform to our health care system, premiums will continue to rise, coverage will become more uncertain, businesses will lose competitiveness and it will be harder for Americans to have access to care.

After months of hearings and over 50 hours of public markups, I was pleased that on July 15th, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed the Affordable Health Choices Act. The Affordable Health Choices Act lays out policy changes for health care reform in America. This package works to rein in health care costs with a goal of lowering them in the long term and ensure that all Americans have access to high quality, affordable health care coverage. It allows those who like their health insurance to keep it and provides options to those who do not have access to health insurance coverage.

This bill includes provisions to implement several key health insurance reforms. For example, insurance companies would no longer be able to refuse coverage to individuals due to preexisting conditions, patients' out-of-pocket expenses would be limited and all annual and lifetime caps on insurance coverage would be eliminated.

The passage of the Affordable Health Choices Act out of the HELP Committee is a major step in the longer process of health care reform. The Senate Finance Committee is also working on many aspects of health care reform and the Affordable Health Choices Act will need to be combined with this legislation in the future. The Finance Committee is expected to release their proposal soon. In addition, the House of Representatives is working on a separate version of health care reform legislation.

As the Senate moves forward on health care reform legislation, I will be weighing the many concerns that I am hearing from constituents all across Washington state. As this effort continues, I will certainly keep your thoughts in mind. You can find more information on my Website at http://murray.senate.gov/healthcarereform/.

Again, thank you for contacting me about this important issue. If you would like to know more about my work in the Senate, please feel free to sign up for my weekly updates at http://murray.senate.gov/updates. Please keep in touch.

I hope all is well in your town.

Speaking Your Piece

For what it's worth, below is a copy of the email I sent to one of my state senators. I don't have any illusions about it actually being read by the senator, but I'm hoping that some lacky will put a check mark in the "pro universal healthcare" collumn as he or she sifts through the day's emails.

Dear Senator Murray,

I will keep this simple. Seeing all the yelling and screaming and carrying on in the news about healthcare reform, I feel the need to try and balance out at least one of those loonies. It is essential that we create a system of universal health care in the United States. I believe this is one of the single most significant issues of our times, and it is so important that this issue not fall by the proverbial wayside.

My husband and I have excellent health coverage due to our employment in public education and a major corporation. However, not all members of my family are so lucky, and it makes me ill to think that a person can work as hard as humanly possible throughout their lifetime, and still end up being financially ruined by a health crisis that occurs before they reach medicare age.

I am strongly in favor of a federal healthcare system, and I vote in every single election. Fight, Senator Murray; fight hard.

Sincerely,

Hooray for Franken

Forgot to mention in the last post (although I'm sure it's been done elsewhere):

Hello I'm Stuart Smalley. I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggonit I'm the junior senator from Minnesota.

Politics and the Media

I just couldn't pass up this wondeful quote since it is so heart-breakingly true:

from Quotes of the Day

"When the politicians complain that TV turns the proceedings into a circus, it should be made clear that the circus was already there, and that TV has merely demonstrated that not all the performers are well trained."

Edward R. Murrow

Gay Rights Victory

Wow! A little good news from the gay rights battlefield today. Out of Iowa of all places.

Stimulus Anger

Given the current economic situation, it stands to reason that people would be looking for someone to blame. Just look at the sheer rage directed at Bernie Madoff. Personally, I think blaming the Bush presidency is always good. Of course blame is never that simple. These days, the popular things seems to be blaming the large companies that whose ridiculously risky behavior seems to have caused so much of the trouble. Every time you turn around, there's another story about how the head of some company spent this much bail-out money on this stupid thing.

My question is, knowing how much scrutiny is on them right now, why do these businesses keep making the same stupid choices? Are they really that out of touch? Do they really think no one will notice if they pay for a new corporate jet/waste basket/bonus using government money? There are two sides to every story, so I'm hoping there is some good reason for these choices to which we are not privy. Otherwise, the level of stupidity and entitlement is shocking to say the least.

John Stewart on NPR

The world has turned upside-down if National Public Radio is featuring stories about John Stewart. Quite a shift for the former late night talk show host who also used to do guest spots on the hideous program Talk Soup. Granted, John Stewart has become quite a liberal hero in the last several years, but I still found it really strange to hear his name coming out of the mouths of Kai Ryssdal and his ilk.

A Nod to Non-Believers

Many commentators are saying that Obama's inaugural speech was somewhat lacking. I would have to disagree. True, he did not go for the idealized flights of fancy that characterized some of his more famous speeches, but hey, this is definitely a time for realism. At times it almost seemed like he was taking the country to task for its collective mistakes, and, again, I thought this was very appropriate. I found his speech to be inspiring without sugar-coated any of the facts about our situation.

One portion that particularly pleased me was his mention of religion:

"...for we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus--and non-believers."

Wow! Non-believers! This IS an historical moment. In my 15 years of following politics closely, I don't think I've ever heard non-believers mentioned in any remotely positive context. Talk about being inclusive! Add to this, all his words about returning science to the fore, and I am feeling very optimistic about his platform. Now if we could only make some progress on gay marriage and charter schools...

Oh Frabjous Day! Obama is President!

Callooh! Callay! we chortled in our joy! Obama is safely elected 45th president of the United States! I do not have the proper words (beyond Carroll) to express the amazement, satisfaction, and delight I am feeling right now. What a long strange trip it's been to get us to this point, and this morning was no exception.

This morning, it was still dark as night when I left the house. Fog was rolling over everything, but you could still see a huge bright crescent moon looming overhead. I thought it set a very interesting tone for the rest of the day. When I got to school I discovered there was no heat in my classroom, or in our building as a whole. The gauge in my room read 52 degrees F. It was so cold that the overhead lights were not working properly, and the classroom was left in a sort of dim shadow.

I assumed that the heat would come on eventually, so I went about trying to make sure that the computer/vcr/cable (no, I don't know why it has to be so complicated) connection was working. I wanted to show the kids at least 30 minutes of the event if not more. The media system had other plans though, and I couldn't get anything besides static on the screen. I asked permission to stream it from the internet, but this was denied. It was really looking as though we might not get to watch the inauguration at all. Meanwhile, the heat still was not on, and the bell began to ring.

You would think that a class full of freezing kids would be most concerned about the freezing part, but this was not the case. They were very upset at the thought that they might not get to see the new president! I'm not kidding, this was their main concern, and several of them spent quite a while trying to get the TV to work. We played "Simon Says" to stay warm, and I served hot cocoa in little paper cups. When the game was over, I showed historic photos and info about past inaugurations. Then Ms. S swept into the room. She did not have any students in her room first period, and she wondered if we would like to come and visit? We made the switch in two minutes flat.

Ms. S. already had the TV on when we arrived in her room, and there he was, Barack Obama, larger than life on the big screen. We were enthralled. Most of the students in my low skill block were silent and attentive during the ceremony. This is a pretty impressive performance for a group of students like them. A few boys had some trouble being quiet, but even they settled down when the actual swearing began. We heard Aretha Franklin, we heard Itzak Perlman and Yo Yo Ma (that was the hardest part for the difficult boys), and we watched Obama put his hand on the Lincoln bible and become our new president. The whole scene gave me chills. There was a spontaneous round of applause from all the students.

I told the kids to really pay attention today because this is one moment in history that they will want to remember. I'm hoping that as the next eight years go by, the inauguration of Barack Obama can begin to eclipse 9/11 as the most important historical event in my memory. It all depends on what he does from this day forward. Best of luck Barack.

The Precise Art of Taunting

At seven and ten years old, my nieces continue to amaze me on a regular basis. They are so creative and smart (but I'm not biased) that they are always catching me by surprise with one new idea or another. Most of the time this is quite wonderful to behold, but it can, from time to time, get to be kind of annoying too. On a recent road trip, M and I beside ourselves at their latest bit of cleverness.

Sitting in the back seat, they are bored by the four hour car ride. It's dark, so they can no longer read, and we don't have any laptops or dvd players in our car. They are becoming antsy. I try to engage them in word games and "what if" questions, but that only works for so long. Pretty soon they start pestering each other. The subject they argue about is indicative of their ultra-liberal magnate school education (which I love):

Small Niece: I'm making up a religion, and you can't have it. It's a religion about giants (she's done Greek mythology at school)

Elder Niece: Oh yeah, well your religion is stupid!

Small Niece: My religion has giants, and it's the best one.

Elder Niece: Oh yeah, well, I'm not respecting your religion!

Small Niece (incensed): You HAVE to respect my religion!

Elder Niece: NO I DON'T! I'm not respecting it! Ha! Ha!

Me: That's enough

Now you have to repeat that entire conversation from beginning to end about 800 more times. Then change my line to "I SAID BE QUIET RIGHT NOW!!!" (oh my goodness, I sound like my mother). The next part is what makes all this so amazing.

Elder Niece: I'm making up a hand sign that means "I don't respect your religion!"

Small Niece: Oh yeah, well I'm making up a hand sign that means "you can't be in my religion!"

They continued to battle out their fake theological differences (yes, via hand signs) for another hundred miles or so, but at least they were quiet. Who knows, on the next road trip, maybe they can debate the meaning of life using only shadow puppets.

Obama Wasn't the Only One

While Barak Obama's victory was certainly the most exciting part about the election, there were a number of other positive results as well. Christine Gregoire is still governor of Washington. While I don't have any really wonderful associations with her, I don't find any faults with her work either. She certainly represents policy perspectives that are much more in line with my beliefs than those of Dino Rossi.

Also, in news that was nearly ignored by much of our state, Randy Dorn appears to have won the race for Superintendent of Public Instruction. I am really very excited about this victory. Like Obama, Dorn is taking charge at a time when it will be tough just to do business as normal. However, I'm really hoping he will make some progress on a few of the more annoying issues that face education in Washington State. Canning or reducing the WASL and the Pro Cert, for example, would actually be a way to SAVE money, and I think he should get to work on that one right away.

Thanks very much to those of you who supported Dorn!

The Perfect Quote

My elder brother had this quote tagged to his messages yesterday, and I it is certainly worth repeating:

"Today we may say aloud before an awe-struck world: 'We are still masters of our fate. We are still captain of our souls." -Churchill

Obama Wins!

And there was great rejoicing! That screaming you can hear in the background is millions of Democrats engaging in the the kind of jubilation that hasn't been seen in, hmm, maybe ever. This is truly a historic day when the United States of America is not just able, but very enthusiastic, about electing an African-American president. It took a situation as bad as the one we're in right now to get people to sit up and take notice, but notice they finally did.

A part of me has been living in the proverbial darkness for eight long years, and it feels unbelieveably good to come back out into the sunlight. Of course there will be challenges, of course he (and they) will make mistakes, of course the situation out there is absolutely grave, but at least we now have some chance of seeing positive outcomes. Republican leadership has literally run this country into the ground over the last eight years, and it is now time to try and repair the damage. Hopefully Barak Obama is feeling up to a challenge. Hooray!

Vote Now!

I know many readers are out of state and many more have already voted. However, if you're in Washington, and you still plan to vote at the polls today, you should get out there and do it now. My school is a polling place, and when I arrived at 6:45 this morning, it was a madhouse. In all the elections I've seen here (this is my third presidential) it's never been like this. The parking lots were overflowing, and people were parking on sidewalks and bus lanes.

However, those must have been the people rushing to make it to work. Right now, the voters are coming and going at a steady clip, but the lines are not bad at all. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that no one is waiting more than 15 or 20 minutes. Nevertheless, I plan to flee by 3pm to avoid the post-work rush. If you're thinking of leaving work at 5pm and heading down to the polls, be sure you bring your dinner and a book because this could get ugly.

The political science part of me is still happy to see this happen. Granted, it took both national and international calamity to get people to sit up and take notice, but still it's good to have so many voters involved. Perhaps if more lazy liberals had done something last time, we wouldn't be in this mess now. Happy voting!

Vote for Dorn

One last minutes election plea. I'm sure you've made up your own mind about most of the ballot you're likely to face tomorrow. However, there are often those odd offices where you might feel that there isn't very much information from which to decide. If this is the case with Superintendent of Public Instruction, please choose Randy Dorn as your candidate. The incumbent, Terry Bergeson, is responsible for a number of problems in Washington education, including the ever- expanding WASL test and the Professional Certification Program for teachers. Having firsthand experience with both, I am enthusiastically voting for Randy Dorn who promises to change both of these issues and a hundred others in our state.

Voting Grumpiness

All this has happened before, and it seems that now it's all happening again. The subject is voting. Once before, when I lived in Oregon, I had to watch my beloved right to vote at the polls go away. The last couple of elections before I moved away, we all got ballots in the mail. It felt like filling out a customer service questionnaire instead of participating in the democratic process. The state saved a little money (it really wasn't that much) and gave up a fair portion of voter anonymity and security. In addition, citizens are robbed of that one remaining civic activity that tied them to their community. Can you tell I don't approve of vote-by-mail?

Therefore, I was incredibly grumpy when a ballot measure similar to the Oregon law passed (I voted against it, but with no luck) in Washington state. Fortunately, the office of elections was unable (for several years) to ready itself for mail elections, and so we were saved. If they are to be believed, the election of 2008 will be the last polling place election in Washington State. Ever after, we will all have those awful mail-in ballots. Aw well, I thought to myself, at least we get to vote properly one more time. I was particularly happy that we would get to do things the traditional way for this, an historic presidential election.

Imagine my surprise, and displeasure, when I received a mail-in ballot at my house. I checked my voter status online, and found that I was listed as a permanent absentee. This was news to me since I'd never filled out the paperwork or checked the box for absentee. Calling the office of elections, I discovered the problem. Since all people will be mail-in soon, the elections people have decided to force some people to make the switch early. How did I have the fortune of being one of their victims? I had the temerity to change my name.

In fact, any kind of change to your voter information automatically tripped this switch. The helpful elections person on the phone informed me that there was no way to put me back on the rolls of poll voters. If I really wanted, I was welcome to drive down to my polling place with my ballot and fill it out in a little booth. Of course, I still can't put it into the machine because they expect mine to come in an envelope with my signature. Gah! They are missing the point! I might as well go into my garage, get out a cardboard box, and put in head in it while I mark my ballot.

It makes me sad to think that I won't get to take my children to vote with me the way my parents took me. I clearly remember the excitement of going to the public school with my mom, getting a look at the all important ballot, and squeezing into the little booth with her as she made her choices. It was the first time I ever thought about what it meant to be a citizen. Sometimes symbolic actions are important to remind people that they are part of something greater than themselves. So I'll mark my ballot, I'll sign my name, and I'll put the thing in the post box with my fingers crossed. However, I can't help feeling like we've lost something here.