Why Does Texas Rep. Stockman's Sad Tale Reveal a Major Healthcare Hypocrisy?

by Nomad

Representative for Texas' 36th congressional district, Steve Stockman is desperate to unseat Republican Senator John Cornyn. Polls show Cornyn with a comfortable lead and plenty of cash reserves to wage an epic battle of the conservatives. 

There's another problem for Stockman. An episode from Stockman's past, bankruptcy which, he claims,  was a result of his father's medical bills, may not be easy to reconcile with his stand on Affordable Health Care for uninsured Texans.

When Rep. Steve Stockman's (R-TX) announced his decision to run against one of the most conservative members in the Senate, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), it didn't require a fortune-teller to predict there would be fireworks. If not a fireworks display, then it has turned out to be a Texas-sized pissing contest over who could be the most conservative.

Ask any Texan and he'll reckon that there's probably nobody on earth- including the residents of all insane asylums in the Longhorn state- who could possibly be more conservative than Stockman. 

But Cornyn comes pretty close.

In spite of Cornyn's lifelong American Conservative Union rating of a frightening 93 percent (which is 2 percent higher than Paul Ryan) Stockman has decided to label his opponent the worst epitaph he could think of- a liberal.
In many parts of Texas, calling people names like that will earn you a fat lower lip and a fractured snout.
Stockman launched his campaign by proclaiming:

I’m conservative Congressman Steve Stockman, and I am running for United States Senate against liberal John Cornyn...

So how does he figure that, you might ask? 

According to Stockman, Cornyn betrayed the cause to de-fund Obamacare and abandoned Republicans during the filibuster. You must remember that. It was the 21- hour filibuster that included a reading of Dr. Seuss, praises for White Castle hamburgers, and a Darth Vader imitation. Even Texas governor Rick Perry (whom Molly Ivans considered "not the sharpest knife in the drawer") derided Cruz's attention-getting ploy as "nonsensical."

There's just one problem with Stockman's strategy against his opponent. In his attempt to portray himself as the true conservative, Stockman has had to ignore a whole chunk of  painful experience. 

Somebody should warn Republicans that victimhood invites closer scrutiny. 

Pete Seeger: The Passing of a Troubadour with a Conscience

by Nomad

At the age of 94 folk singer Pete Seeger has died. Many younger readers may not know who this man was. During the 1960s, Seeger harnessed the power of music to rally a nation. At that time, the relatively obscure folk music market suddenly became a tool of protest for causes such as  international disarmament, civil rights, counterculture and environmental causes.

"Where have all the Flowers Gone?" written by Seeger with Joe Hickerson in 1955, is one of my personal favorites. It has been sung by a large number of artists from Vera Lynn, Bobby Darin, Olivia Newton-John to U2. Marlene Dietrich recorded her own version, Sag mir, wo die Blumen sind. (It's surprisingly good too!) 

This anti-war song has been translated in dozens of languages. In Turkish- Söyle Çiçekler nerde? In Russian- Где цветы, дай мне ответ? and even in Hebrew איפה הפרחים כולם

Let's listen to Seeger rendition.

If you are interested in learning more about the man, PBS produced a documentary saluting his life. It's worth your time.

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Minnesota 6th District: An End to the Michele Bachmann Legacy of Lunacy?

by Nomad

For seven years, Michele Bachmann has held Minnesota's Sixth Congressional District seat. In that time she has unintentionally amused and often horrified the rest of the country with her antics. Since her announcement that she would not be seeking re-election this year, the field is now wide open now for the state's most conservative district. 

What chances do Democrats candidates like Jim Read, have?  A glance at the Republicans in the race tells us that it all depends on whether Minnesota voters are looking for a change or just Bachmann's clone. 

Reading Jim Read

On January 24th, Jim Read, 55, from Avon, Minnesota, declared his candidacy for Michele Bachmann's district. The district, the most Republican-leaning of Minnesota’s congressional districts, is up for grabs ever since Bachmann announced she would not be seeking re-election. For years, under the Bachmann, the district has been under Republican Tea Party control. (Some might call it a form of witchcraft.)

Jim Read is, without much exaggeration, Bachmann's polar opposite.  With a solid middle-class background, Jim Read wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth. In high school, Read worked as bus boy and dishwasher and later on a paving crew for the National Park Service in summer. That work record is the kind of thing that appeals to Minnesotans. 

On the other hand, his educational background is nothing to snicker at (unlike Bachmann's Oral Roberts University degree.) He then went on to graduate Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Chicago and then went on to earn a Ph. D. in political science from Harvard University.

Since that time, Read has taught political science at the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University.
In addition to that, Read is the author of three books, including Doorstep Democracy: Face to Face Politics in the Heartland, an account of his door-to-door campaign for the Minnesota Legislature in 1992. 

The crux of that book reveals Read's idea that "conversations between citizens concerned about their communities can get us beyond the television ads, mass mailings, and sound bites to rejuvenate American democracy."

Professional campaign organizers might not agree. The verdict is out but it's a nice thought. Relying solely on the common sense and maturity of the voters of District 6 could be a risky proposition.  I mean, just look how they've voted in the past (an' stuff). 

On Anniversary of His Death, New Documentary on Life of Aaron Swartz Premieres

by Nomad

This month marked the first anniversary of the tragic death of Aaron Swartz, internet activist and programming pioneer. Swartz ended his life, facing a possible prison sentence for downloading millions of academic articles from servers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

Buffalo Creek Flood of '72: Why Environmental Disasters are Nothing New In West Virginia

by Nomad

Next month marks the 42nd anniversary of one of West Virginia's worst man-made disaster, The Buffalo Creek Flood. We take a look back to learn what did and what did not happen and why it is important for the people of West Virginia in the aftermath of the recent chemical spill.

A Man-Made Disaster

On an early Saturday morning on February 26th, 1972, West Virginia was the scene of one of the worst man-made disasters in this country's history. Without warning, a retaining dam wall built by a local coal mining company to hold the immense coal-waste refuse pile gave way. The coal slurry rolled down from the nearby hill and thundered down into the long narrow Buffalo Creek Valley. 

The black wave of rainwater, black coal-waste water, and sludge from a coal washing operation- an estimated 130 million gallons of it- created a deadly a 20 to 30-foot tidal wave, catching the residents completely unaware. The tsunami traveled at a speed reaching 30 miles per hours and ended up devastating sixteen small communities. 

The slurry was deadly in another way too. Here is a list of the chemicals typically found in coal slurry and sludge. 

According to one source:

Chronic exposure to the metals found in coal slurry can damage virtually every part of the body. Health problems caused by these metals include intestinal lesions, neuropathy, kidney and liver failure, cancer, high blood pressure, brittle bones, miscarriages and birth defects among others. Studies of the effects of coal slurry on human cell tissues have found evidence that coal slurry causes cancerous proliferation, cell death and damage to kidney cells.

Of course, the victims had more to worry about than the long-term effects of exposure to toxic waste. Over 125 people died immediately, of those most were women and children unable to extract themselves from the sludge and debris. There were over 4000 survivors and in the end, 1000 of their homes and all of their possessions were destroyed.