Taxes in a Time of Taxes

It's April 15th, and depending where you are, you still have time to file your taxes here in the United States. (Either on your computer or by dropping it off at an open post office.) And not to worry if you've somehow forgotten about tax seasons end. You can still file tomorrow. As long as you don't owe you shouldn't have to worry about penalties, otherwise...

But it is our annual process. We balance out the books. We had the government withhold some of our income, and it now learns how much of that it should keep to pay into supporting our society, and how much it should return to us. Unless you didn't do withholding on your wages, and then you get to pay in now. (But really it is a matter of taste. You can either put the money at the start, or you can plan a year ahead and save the money to pay in. Whatever works best for you.) W-4's matter.


Sadly people have a visceral hate for our system to handle the funding of our country. Love the armed forces, fixed roads, border protection. Hate actually having to pay for these things. Hating on the IRS is an easy way to get some cheers. It's an honest reaction. But it's not altogether a rational one. It can be tragically irrational.

So...This what you do when you owe money?

A collection of accountants and bureaucrats, that some how get painted as evil for doing vital work, The IRS is given a function. Make sure people pay in what we as a society agree to do. Sure not everyone does pay in...But we all need to make changes to get billionaires, corporations, and ministries to get with it. (How is it that the powerful who skip out on taxes aren't painted as the villains?)

Fighting for America by moving profits overseas, and living
the good life (while having it's workforce live on Medicaid
and Food Snap).

John Oliver and Civil Forfeiture

Last Week Tonight again touches on troubling processes in the United States. This time around, Civil Forfeiture.

Through it, police are supposed to be able to confiscate and use resources from criminals.

But that's not how it's actually used much of the time...

I think one police chief put it well.

Pennies from heaven?

They want to buy stuff...for vital police work, honest.

And to get the money the want, they just target people who are carrying money and aren't going to be able to push back. It's netted police forces more billions of dollars.

Police will actually quiz people about if they are carrying any large sums of cash. There's an eagerness to find a big jackpot. Ka Ching!

Then there's the houses taken, and the cars taken. It seems rather easy to snatch up property from people.

Tens of thousands of these people go on to face no charges. They are expected to just move along. But they aren't getting the cash back. But if they are lucky they may pay a fine to get back some property. Of course efforts to get back property mean facing an adversarial system.

How is this not troubling to more people? How are people not outraged to have laws like this on the book? How is this not called corruption?

As a final word. Tenny Mucho Mucho Dinero In Su Trucky-Trailer?

Meeting of Minds: John Oliver and Pepe Julian Onziema

John Oliver had a sober and sarcastic look at Uganda and it's anti-gay laws. In the US many of us have been interested in what has been called the Kill The Gays law. But, as we do, we got bored with all of that. And then most of us deleted most of our anger, opinions, and facts of the law from our heads. John Oliver nicely reintroduces us to the matters.

For instance, while Uganda had some social and legal issues with gay people, the last several years has seen a significant and hateful uptick. What started with uptight British colonials is now a matter of American Conservative intervention. The Religious Right has worked to motivate the local religious communities hate, and pushed them to make changes to the law.

And then we had those freaking politicians. Another topic you may have decided to forget about is C Street and The Family. People like Jeff Sharlet did solid work bringing out the truth of this group of politicians who were tied by their religious zeal and interest in making hateful law. They've screwed people over in this country, but always have time for other countries.

So preachers and politicians have worked to bring about their dream of a hateful and homogeneous society. Not to leave out the elements of Uganda society eager to embrace hate and fear.

If you've followed news and conversations in Uganda, you've seen the fear, hate, and ignorance spread about being gay. (Stephen Fry spent some time their and showed the outright ignorance of the anti-gay advocates in his Out There documentary.) They repeatedly claim all gay people are "converting straight people. And, on having sex...You have to doubt they even understand sex between males and females.

But for a mix of stuff that will make you laugh, scream, curse, and try to hope, have some John Oliver. Also, get to know the fascinating and brace Pepe Julian Onziema, an open LGBT advocate in Uganda. He's quite a remarkable man.


From Last Week Tonight with John Oliver:



And in addition to the show, some more of their conversation presented online.

The World Cup and FIFA 2014...Not the video game.

The World Cup is about to start!

What's the World Cup? The greatest sports spectacle in the world. The meeting of national teams of football/soccer players who compete until one nation stands victorious!

It's the big time...outside the United States. ...Come on, America!

Still, it isn't without issues. It's run by FIFA, a massive multinational institution. And it pulls in a lot of cash.Some of it legit, some of it far from legit. (A lot of these issues are the same problems the IOC has.)

And they are showcased right now in Brazil. Around 3-4 miles around each stadium is more or less under the direct control and authority of FIFA; they are Fifalands.

In Brazil it's illegal to sell or have alcohol at a stadium. In Fifaland, it's encouraged and branded. Will that be happening in Qatar to in 2018?

In Brazil there are a lot of street merchants selling food and other items. In Fifaland, they are barred for miles around each stadium. So much for that financial return to those further down the Brazilian economic ladder. Not to worry those at the top are making a bundle.

In the 2014 South African World Cup a certain company produced a massive number of bright orange overalls for Holland fans, and the fans loved the garish representation for going to games. But that company was not one that paid to be present, so all the overall were banned and taken away.

Presidebt Rousseff defends Cup and
FIFA.

And this year in Brazil there has been a lot of unrest among people angry that in the midst of poverty and need in the country vast amounts of money are being spent for this spectacle. It is contentious. It's to the point that the Brazilian president, Dilma Rousseff, had to come out and ask Brazilians to unite and support the World Cup.

It's a flawed and troubling process all around. It needs reform. It needs changes.

But...It's the freaking World Cup!!! And I want to watch! I want to celebrate the sport. I want to enjoy it.

And the Ents march.

Still, while I will watch, I want to be aware of the severe problems and injustice tied to it. We shouldn't hide from the problems in the things we enjoy. I want things to get better.


So if you want to laugh some, learn some, and get a little revved up...\

From Last Week Tonight with John Oliver:

Bundy Ranch: The Takers Come Home To Roost

The most patriotic anti-American patriot ever.

...I probably should have made that a cattle reference. Still, Clive Bundy doesn't make much of any sense either.

A rancher in Nevada, Bundy has taken it upon himself to skip out on paying grazing fees for his cattle over the past 20 years. These fees were being paid by his neighbors as needed, and by any other rancher in the country.

It's a simple enough idea. You want additional grass and scrub for your cattle. So you can make a deal with a neighbor, to allow your cattle on their land for awhile to eat. As part of the deal you may agree about how long they can stay, or you can pay for the use of the land.

It seems very friendly and simple. It seems rather capitalistic.

But not to Bundy. He seems to have decided that since the land is owned by the government, he can use it at will for whatever reasons he decides. And when he's asked to pay his fees, he refuses. And when he goes to court looses, he still refuses. And when he looses again in court, he refuses...You see how this is going.

He's a cheat. He currently owes around one million dollars. (Imagine how nicely you'd be treated if you refused to pay that amount of money to the government.)

Giving Everyday - Giving to good causes

Today is called by some Giving Tuesday, a counter to the consumerism, and just a reminder to invest in bettering the world around you. There are many places you can give money. Or time. Or moral support.

One such choice is the Salvation Army, a Christian organization. They spread out earlier and earlier each year. Ringing bells. Giving you expectant looks. And they do some good work. They can and do help people. And, people out there ringing away, are people that get hired for the season for a small wage.

But they are also not friendly to gay people. It's part of their religious tenets. Workers have been turned away for being gay. And there are stories of gay people being refused shelter. It isn't a representation of the whole group. But there are question marks in their policy. They say they are trying to do better, but how much is yet to be seen.

They have also run into other issues. Past treatment of union families. A large number of child abuse cases in Australia. And questions of mismanagement in some areas.

And, as it is, I would prefer to give to organizations that will not be funding religious efforts or antigay efforts. I like to find groups that are apart from that messiness.

So, as an alternative, let me suggest some of the numerous organizations out there that are more secularly focused, and not limiting where or how they aid.

Groups to support:

• Amnesty International - They campaign for the human rights of people around the world.
• Direct Relief - This organization works to improve health and lives of people affected by poverty, or emergency situations.
• Doctors Without Borders - Made up primarily of health care facilitators, they operate in 60 countries, helping people dealing with disasters and violence. 
• Engineers Without Borders - Support local efforts to work on development projects.They work on projects including, drinking water access, sanitation, and roads.
• Feed America - The organization works to help feed those in need of food. They do this with food banks. (And with the cuts to SNAP, they are in desperate need.)
• Goodwill - This organization works to give job training, employment, and other services for the disabled.
• Humanist Charities - Tied to the American Humanist Association, it offers aid in matters of health and welfare via a humanist approach.
• Madre - An international women's human rights group that addresses the wide range of issues affecting women in local communities.
• Planned Parenthood - Health care providers, educators, and advocates for health care access and knowledge. They work to guarantee a right to make one's own informed reproductive decisions. Also, to ensure those in poverty to have access to support. They also are at work on a global level.
• Red Cross - A well known organization, it does good work on disaster relief, producing almost half of the United States' blood supply, and offering training on health.
• UNICEF - United Nations Children's Fund - They focus on children's interest around the globe. They work in many areas, including immunization, education, and emergency relief.

Not as direct, but important, the fighters for free speech and privacy.

More groups:

• American Civil Liberties Union - The organization works to preserve First Amendment rights.
• Electronic Frontiers Foundation - An organization that works to preserve digital rights. Among it's focuses are privacy, free speech, and consumer rights.
• Comic Book Legal Defense Fund - An organization focused on preserving First Amendment rights in the comic field, for artists to produce and readers to access.

More shorts, more Tales from Metropolis.

Came across more of the Tales from Metropolis shorts that were produced for the DC Nation block on Cartoon Networks.

They make for some fun shorts.



TALES OF METROPOLIS...

Taking away a kid's meal, with a SNAP! *UPDATED*

November has arrived. And with it money from the 2009 stimulus, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is being withdrawn in certain areas. In particular, money that was going to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), or food stamps. $5 BILLION. (This is on top of the sequester cuts already in place on SNAP.) This is the equivalent amount to all the charity that goes into the Food Bank (to aid those in poverty get food) system over an entire year. What more can charities do, as they are already strained before the cuts are factored in?

This is a troubling situation. As it is, many families using SNAP struggle to afford meals past the third week in every month. Now, $36 a month will be taken from families, on average. For some of us, $36 is nothing. But when you are living in poverty, when you are stretching your budget to just sustain you and your kids, when you have to send your kids to school hungry, it's everything.

Sadly, conservatives don't see this. As it is, if you are in poverty, and have ANYTHING (a phone, a computer, a car, microwave) you are judged cruelly. You are mocked. Ir is a vain disinterest in the needs and troubles of your fellow citizens.

If you listen to these people trying to survive, you will hear about the jobs they aren't hired for, or the disabled kid they are spending their days nursing, or the fact they are working at a place like McDonald or Walmart and are expected by bosses to survive on SNAP and Medicaid support.

The end of this stimulus aid will hurt so many. And it will mean money that won't get spent on commerce. 47 million are now being affected by these cuts. And as the economic conditions in this country continue to be rough, more may needs it. But everyone is expected to do with less...Well, everyone poor (or in the middle class) is. This seems like a horrible time to cut this investment in this country's future.

We can be sure Republicans in the Congress will not be acting to help them people. Because it doesn't stop there. In the Senate they are working on ways to CUT another $4 BILLION from SNAP. And in the House, they are eager to cut $39 BILLION.

Here's a map of how the November cuts will hit states. Feel free to imagine what another $4-$39 billion will hit your state, and the whole country.

Republicans sneer and call the people using SNAP lazy. They call them leeches. They call them freeloaders. 1 in 7 Americans?

Is that what this looks like to you? I can't help but remember the condescending and low brow piece Tucker Carlson had done for his website, where he had an intern "live on" SNAP benefits. He didn't really, but it was an excuse to mock people like those above. Republicans have gotten very use to punching down at those without power.

Some Republicans even have called SNAP (funds to help people in poverty pay for food) is a cruel abuse of the poor...Imagine that? Imagine the mindset that embraces that thinking, and then goes on TV to declare it?

And they get enough votes to go to Congress.

The crassness towards the poor is not new from conservatives. It's just gotten louder and more effective at leave those in need out in the cold.


Here's Chris Hayes look at this dire problem.



I am at a lost of patience with the GOP's cold indifference to these people.


_________
UPDATE:

A reminder about the economic impact of SNAP.

Every $1 returns $1.79 to the economy. How can this not sound like a good investment to the GOP? It helps feed kids and others in poverty and funnels money right into the businesses on Main Street and around your neighborhood. Is it because it isn't going straight to the top of the largest corporations to be trickled down? (The way all is born and blessed to travel. So sayeth the Board.)

It makes economic sense AND helps those in need. The GOP response? Where's the punishment? Where's the humiliation?

Get to know your Obamacare.

Healthcare Triage is a new YouTube show, looking at medicine.

For their first show, Obamacare and October 1st.

COMING SOON! Republicans Shutdown The Government...I hate tired retread sequels. *UPDATED*

UPDATED:

It is official now. The Federal Government is closed.

...Unfortunately, we do not have a clear indication that Congress will act in time for the President to sign a Continuing Resolution before the end of the day tomorrow, October 1, 2013. Therefore, agencies should now execute plans for an orderly shutdown due to the absence of appropriations....

____

Also I should note that while 800,000 are being sent home today. Another 1,000,000 will be asked to stay on the job and receive no pay (The Republican dream.).

Also the House GOP last night, in the closing minutes of government started pushing to go to a conference committee. There they would fight/"negotiate" out the House and Senate bill.

This could sound good. The trouble is that the Democrats have been pushing for this on this matter for months now (It's been on the table since April.). But Republicans wanted to push to a late night showdown. But at the end, they wanted the conference.

And Reid said no. This is because a last minute conference where Republicans will continue to push ancillary issues, like the "Conscious Clause" on to Democrats as the government sits in shut down is just unacceptable. They can't win an election on their bad ideas, so they want a budget crisis to force their ideas on the country instead.

Republicans seems eager to disable government until they get all their wants. And they aren't getting their way.

GOP needs to grow up.

____

So we quickly race to a government shutdown, and Republicans are hard at work, getting on Twitter, getting on TV, making speeches they hope will make great campaign ads...You know, the important things.

So what is some of the impact of these efforts by Republicans to kill the Obamacare, block access to birth control, etc?

• Small Business Administration stops loaning to business.
• Student loans slow down.
• Home loans slow down.
• Clinical trials by National Health Institute will stop.
• EPA and other regulators slow down or just stop.
• Slowdown in passport processing.
• National Guard will hold off in aiding in disaster relief.
• Women, Infants, and Children nutrition program stops.
• The quick service at airports via E-Verify stops. (I imagine this will be quickly restarted. As last time.)

And along this, it will impact our economy. Because, despite the Republican mantra, government/public jobs ARE REAL JOBS. They may like to pretend otherwise, but all these people not working, not getting paid, and all the services out of function will hurt the country. We will look at 800,000 people going to work tomorrow morning to be told to go home, without pay.

Shutdowns remind us how much we rely on and need government. Republican never learn this lesson. So it is up to us voters to teach it to them at the ballot box.

Be pissed. Be registered.  Be ready to vote.

Conservative callousness towards the low income worker. *UPDATED*

Saw this quote noted on a post:

But, why should every job pay enough to live on? The whole idea of a diverse economy is that there are many, many, many jobs on which you can make a living, and there are many jobs which are not intended — they’re at the bottom of the scale — they’re not jobs you’re supposed to be able to live on. … When you’re unskilled, you should not expect to be able to make a living off of your ordinary day’s labor.

And this is just a taste of the attitude we see. Some jobs are just "those jobs". And, some people are...you know.

It's a confident callousness towards those that struggle with acquiring a good paying job, with personal problems, with illnesses, with family they take care of, and a whole range of issues and factors. It's an assurance that those you aren't well off, or economically stable are being punished (by God, by fate, by society, by that damn Invisible Hand). Or, you are one of them (the good lot), and one of those type (foreigner, union, atheist, teacher, liberal) screwed you over.

It all fits together to them. If you are getting minimum wage, you are clearly a teenager. You have to be. Otherwise, you'd...you can't be receiving minimum wage, cause that just doesn't happen. Yet, we can see that those getting minimum wage are around 50% people over 25. And if you are a part time worker (which more and more of us are being pushed into) you are more likely to be pushed towards minimum wages. And the trend over the last few decades has been a growth of those with more education and age finding themselves working in lower wage jobs.

I suppose conservatives feel people are being silly taking these jobs. Don't they know better? Just take that high paying job instead!

The reality is people who can't find work in their fields are struggling and looking for work in other areas to sustain them, and what they often find is part time offers.

Sure, if you are at a major news network it probably not too bad to move jobs. Nor if you're at a major think tank. But for the rest of us, it is rough.

Which is why things like food stamps or Obamacare are so desperately needed (Also various government services in dire peril this week.). Yet conservatives are eager to slash at these. It'd be nice if conservatives were helping out. (No. Ending the minimum wage isn't helping.) Not to worry they are sending cash to corporate farming, the military, and military contractors. I'm sure that will...trickle down to us before long.

__________
UPDATED:

Okay. started seeing typos. Had to step in, and stop hitting my head on my desk.

Good News! Even if the fall does kill you, Ted Cruz will be fine.

There's a classic line from Douglas Adams:

"It's not the fall that kills you; it's the sudden stop at the end."

In the last several years, the Republican Party has proven itself eager to engage in a scientific study to see if this is true. They've cut aid and support, leaving vital funding often plummeting. And, as we seen already, Republicans are all too ready to bring the government, country, and economy to a grinding stop.

Following on the conservative experimentation of last week, the effort to take away funding from Obamacare in the House, we now move to the Senate. In the House there was a line of Republicans eager to crow and call out for ending the program and shutting down government. Those voices are far less loud or numerous in the Senate. So does the deadly game change?

In the Senate, we have Ted Cruz, of Texas. He’s been in office for 9 months. And comes from Texas, where is crazy rhetoric already won him office. So he’s been revving up for a fight for awhile.

He’s the bargain lawyer from your late night TV watching. Really he is. If you watch enough TV, you've probably seen his ads come on again and again. And like so many of these ads, he’s been selling a lousy and dubious product, the idea that Obamacare should be defunded.

"Call in the next 10 minutes and receive a free Brazilian Power Crystal."

But while he is a sort of slick TV lawyer, he shouldn't be underestimated. He is a lawyer who has argued before the Supreme Court. He isn't a small town kid new to the bright lights of the big city. He has been around. He just talks to his audience usually, angry hostile Tea Party conservatives.

To do this work and stir up his audience, he’s needed more than the president for a baddie in his pantomime play. He’s been also hitting the House Republicans. For awhile he’s been mocking the House for not putting out a serious enough effort to defund Obamacare. He’s tried to turn conservative ire on them.

So, finally, the House acted and is throwing him just what he wants. Which means he’ll either have to lead a losing fight against changing the House bill, or shut up. A possibility a number of Republicans would enjoy.

But he’s hoping to throw this back again on to House Republicans. He wants the House to respond to a blocking of the House plan with a new strategy. First, refuse to pass a complete continuing resolution to fund the government. Then, pass small parts of it, to send to the Senate. That way Republicans can just fund the parts of government they value. (You’ll remember this was their approach to the Farm Bill, where they funded corporate farms, but later cut food stamp funding.)

And what I am interested in with Cruz is that he thinks if they send the Senate just the military funding, the Senate will have to fund it, or take all the blame for the shutdown.

I know FOX News will try to sell this. I know Right Wing radio and Murdoch will peddle it. But, as history suggests, the country never buys it.

But it seems clear that Cruz is uninterested in the impact these little experiments have on his party, his country, his economy, or his fellow citizens. So what is he out for?

It boggles the mind.

Why are the Republicans screaming at their own reflection.

I'm unsure, but I think Republicans, like cats and dogs sometimes, don't know it's their own reflection in the mirror. It's true. I think they look in mirrors and don't know what they are looking at.

At least that is the only explanation I can think of to explain the latest ad coming from the GOP.

In the ad a women visits a doctor's office.

And that seems nice. ...Except...she's on...OBAMACARE!!!

That's horrible! Cause you not what that means!

GOVERNMENT INTRUSION IN THE DOCTOR'S OFFICE!!!

You may feel a tiny bit insulted and talked down to
by Republicans.

Yeah. Republicans are warning you about someone trying and force themselves into your medical decisions...the duplicity is so rife I struggle with what to say. It is just amazing.

If you've forgotten, somehow, Republicans have spent years trying to take away women's access to abortion. And long the way they've worked to step in the way of access to birth control, the Pill, and just getting honest forthright information from doctors.

These Republicans are the lot that have put laws on the books to silence doctors from using or offering their considerable medical knowledge, if it offends the dubious morals of conservatives. Republicans have been none too kind to rape victims. And in the last year, they've at least once tried to force women who suffer a miscarriage to go into the police, so they can be investigated.

These are the people now trying to tell us about the dangers of liberal government intervention in medicine. And by intervention, they means having guaranteed access to insurance to make it possible for millions to access needed health services.

They are the cat staring in the mirror, thinking its seeing another cat. Republicans say racist statements, and thinks it's the other cat doing it. They see attacks on women's rights, and see the other side doing it all. They see efforts to destabilize government, and think they have to stop it. They keep hissing and jumping at the mirror, and don't get that it's their own reflection.

How else do you explain this?

Well, they could also just be dishonest pricks, throwing their faults, crimes, and mistakes at the other side and hoping they'll stick...But have we ever seen them do that...regularly since the turn of the century...

And with that cats freaked by their reflection.

Another Banner Day for Cantor

JACQUELYN MARTIN/AP

Just last night I was marveling at how Eric Cantor was so eager to take a lead in going after food that ought to be in the hands of children (and the elderly and veterans and anyone in need). You might think such an endeavor would sate one for the week.

But not our Eric.

Today he lead a ridiculous event. (I know, I know. It's his specialty.) With great aplomb and revelry, the US House of Representatives voted to cut funding to Obamacare (The Affordable Care Act. But I think almost everyone has given up calling it this.). Yeah. Woo! They did it! They voted on this!

I'll give you a moment to recover from the stirring and historic news from this morning.


Better?

Yeah, it's quite ridiculous. How many times have they voted to repeal the Obamacare law now? Is it over 50? Because I thought I'd heard that when they get to the fiftieth vote, everyone in the House gets a free lobbyist. Really at this point they've done this enough to acquire a repetitive strain injury.

AP PHOTO  - j. SCOTT APPLEWHITE

Having successfully voted on this one more time, they raced to a camera to cheer their great victory...Which at best will lead to a short filibuster in the Senate before vanishing. It may make the effort to fund the government, keep the lights on, keep millions of Americans getting their paychecks, etc, a bit harder. It may help amp up the fight over the debt ceiling. It may be just that little bit of bull crude needed to tip us into debt default later this year. But other than that, it isn't going to change the implementation of Obamacare. It is still coming later this year. That is unchanged

So in that regard, the Republican stunt today is meaningless, unless you spend your day listening to Right Wing Radio. In that case, we are marching to end the socialist blight of Islam...Or something. Is will also be made into campaign brochures, ads, and speeches, and bring in some more cash. But it is just theater.

Most of what's happen in the House these days centers around making an art out doing nothing, and getting paid handsomely for it. Time and again, they push out bills that will go nowhere, but will get them on TV, or make a good bit of red meat for the most rabid of the base. But this last week they've worked hard, to take away food and health care access from millions.

But none of this is important. What's important is the illusion...I think I may be comparing Eric Cantor to Gob Bluth...

But, actually, Gob may be a good example of Cantor and the joke of an event this morning.

That's because today was a joke. They want to try and pretend it was a success. They want to have everyone think things have changed. They want to act like they are strutting around with confidence, but really they want to sneak away and cry. I mean they had people there to cheer them on as they threw out their anemic talking points. It was just sad.

And Eric Cantor wants to make himself the center of attention in it all. The brave hero. The mastermind. But he's just a pathetic attention getter.

Sadly, when this is all done, I wonder if Eric Cantor has the temerity to even admit to himself, "I've made a huge mistake"?

I wonder if he knows what he really wants to do, and what price everyone will pay for him to achieve that?


A little tribute in honor Cantor's showmanship.

Eric Cantor vows to drink the poor's milkshake, and then take candy from a baby.

Today the US House of Representatives finally got around to addressing the funding of food stamps, or as they've been renamed, SNAP (Supplemental Nutritional…Mobile Army Strike…Surgical Hospital…Logistics Division…)…food stamps, okay?

Earlier this year the Farm Bill, dealing with the production of food on farms AND aid to those in poverty came through Congress. But in the fight that conservatives have made Congress day to day, there was contention. Already, there was a push to slash out $20 billion from aid to those in poverty, which is harsh, and I oppose. But conservatives pondered, “Is this all there is? Couldn't I do more?” Oh, well, we know they didn't ponder it. They raced to enact a doubling of the harmful cuts to food stamps.

But, alas, they faced stiff Democrat resistance on this. So, the Farm Bill got split up. And, now, food stamps are on the chopping block.

Brendan Hoffman / Getty Images

The Republican plan, giddily put forward by Eric Cantor, will cut $40 billion over the next 4 years. And by next year 3.8 million will be kicked out of the SNAP program (And more and more will be hit as the decade passes).  As well, access will be tightened to access food stamps, and many state waivers will be cancelled. Where all these people end up, how they get fed, that isn't Eric Cantors problem. You should have thought about it before you chose to be poor.

And, finally, getting to the floor, the message was clear. The vote was 217 to 210. All but 15 Republicans voted for these cuts. The Republicans are clear, food stamps aren't a priority. And, now with the economic trouble we are having in this country. Food stamps are instrumental for millions. But this is yet another investment in the country Republicans are not just unwilling to make, they are hostile to it.

And it isn't just Congressional Republicans at work. Kaisch, in Ohio, is eager to ramp up pressure on the poor as well. He wants to be sure there are stringent work requirements, if you want to eat. Trouble is that in Ohio (47^th in job creation); there isn't exactly a surplus of jobs to give these people living in such poverty (Its part of the issue.).

But the implication is clear; you have to force people that are struggling and hungry to work. To Republicans, they are lazy and dishonest. The contempt is clear.

And it is a stunningly ill-conceived plan. Even if there is some job, they have to spend money to get to the job. Then, if they have kids, pay for someone to take care of them. And, let’s face it; these jobs won’t be well playing ones. Will this just put them deeper in the hope? All just to allow conservatives to feel they've won and economic and moral victory over those in poverty? Really?

This effort will hurt so many. There is a troubling level of food insecurity in the country now. One in seven families struggle with having consistent access to enough food to be healthy. This comes to around 49 million, a fifth of them kids. These numbers are growing.

This many are already struggling. And where will they and others be when the Republicans are done? What happens to them? What happens to this country when we struggle like this, and turn our backs on millions?

For now this time wasting is meaningless. It shouldn't pass through the Senate. And it won’t be signed into law by the president. But it is dragging out the legislative process, which is par for the course with Eric Cantor. And with the fights over budgets and debts to come, those in poverty will be targeted more by House Republicans.

But this isn't the only trouble facing those relying on food stamps to get by, week by week. Since 2009, the Recovery Act has been enhancing the SNAP program. But, come November 1^st, this support will be ending. And, at that point, a family of three will see their monthly support drop by $29 a month.

The struggle for those in poverty is continuing. And Eric Cantor just toys with them. Being poor shouldn't make you an easy target for politics.

Us and guns, quite a culture.

Another tragic series of deaths at the hands of a gunman. It happens so regularly, you could be tempted to be glib. But their is nothing funny in these acts.

Yet their is something distinctly ridiculous in how some choose to look at the aftermath.

Tucker Carlson (Who doesn't wear a bow tie anymore,  because THEY ARE COOL NOW.) thinks the answer to people taking up firearms to massacre people is to be afraid of people dealing with mental illness.

These liberals. They don't know an AR-15 from . But mental illness? That's something we can all get around demonizing. Right?

He isn't alone in this as other across FOX News also are eager to point away from gun access to attack people in need of treatment, stigmatizing them.

Many would be happy to see complete databases of mental health data, as long as gun ownership won't be part of the record.

Ridiculous.

But let's be clear. Mental health is an important issue. And should be of interest. People in need of aid should get it, just like with all aspects of health care. But when Republicans bring it up it feels truly hollow. The likes of Mitt Romney and Ronald Reagan always saw mental health as a place to cut, leaving many in need out on the streets.

If only Republicans actually cared about this issue. It's easier for them to demagogue it then care.

But more was going on at FOX News. Over at Fox and Friends they seemed to be coming up with a Video Game Registry. They saw value in seeing how often people buy violent video games.

Yeah. That could be a warning sign.

Someone stockpiling AR-15's? Eh. That's nothing odd. Someone who's played all the Call of Duty games, all the Splinter Cell games, and all the Halo games? That is a warning sign.

Yet, as others have pointed out, so many countries have avid video game playing populations. But they don't see the same levels of violence, and particularly gun violence. Somehow it isn't happening there.

But some people like to have something they can point at and send the angry mob after.

"Come out, Mario!"
"...Mario is in another castle...?"

But the guns? Heaven forfend if we bring up extended clips, armor piercing rounds, or guns that are better suited to assaulting your hometown bank, then taking down a stag! That would be beyond the pale.

Once this country was open to having reasonable limits on gun ownership. Some things were acceptable. Some things only a nut would try and own. But the gun industry saw another path. Paranoia. Fear. Hate. And, lo, their came the Preppers. And it's proven to be quite a racket.

So, yeah, if we had fewer of the "not" full automatic weapons around we would be safer. And if guys would stop trying to walk into department stores with giant knives strapped to their thighs, we'd all feel a little safer.

WARNING to Conservatives, this video may cause you to learn - Plan B pills

Came across this video. It gives a simple explanation of what the Plan B pill does and doesn't do. Let's get passed the misinformation.


It is not an abortion (Not that abortion should be an anathema.). And when people want to tell you, or someone you know, it is, correct them.

People shouldn't be shamed, or lied, away from their valid medical choices.

CISPA, And Why People Are Pissed and Scared

CISPA, or Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, is a bill that broadly expands the power government and business to share and use information, your information. It is an annoying bill, to say the least. Not in particular because it is one that refuses to stay down. A number of attempts have been made to pass it or similar bill in the last few years. Remember SOPA and PIPA? It's proving worse than a bad movie slasher. Not even a Son of CISPA. (But it is a curse.)

So. It is back, like a bad slasher movie remake (Don't worry. I'm killing these comparisons now.). And like before the idea is to sell it as a beneficent new law meant to help us, and keep us safe. Trouble comes in how it opens up the citizenry to new levels of privacy invasions. If the government says the words "national security", POP!, you're privacy rights and agreements online are no longer valid. (Lifehacker, Verge, and here look some more at the  CISPA bill and it's troubles.)

Here's the bill language.

 What this means is that when the government sees a threat, or deems one is rising, it can request an online provider hand over certain persons data. The provider can then just hand over all of the persons information. And under the new law the provider is protected from any lawsuits for violating promises about protecting personal data. It is all a quick and legal transaction between business and government.

And that is the key to CISPA now. SOPA got industrial opposition (the major business interests) because they were stuck in the middle and open to being held accountable. But now they will be made immune, while the law will still be able to screw the users over. But Twitter, Facebook  etc. will be fine (Phew!). The key thing is that this means these players aren't backing us now. For instance, AT&T and Verizon, along with the Telecom lobbyists, have come out in eager support now of CISPA.

And this is troubling. Troubling for peoples ability to speak freely. Troubling for privacy. Troubling for being able to feel confident in out constitutional rights.

CISPA is a very broadly defined law. It will make it extremely easy to bypass your legal rights. In my previous post I mentioned the Public Safety exemption to the Miranda rights. That currently just bends your constitutional rights. But it creates a future risk. With CISPA, as it is right now, it sets out a way to just disregard parts of the constitution, a constitutional bypass.

No warrants. No courts. No oversight. The American Library Association noted with the last attempt to pass this:

... 

The ALA is concerned that all private electronic communications could be obtained by the government and used for many purposes–and not just for cybersecurity activities. H.R. 3523 would permit, and sometimes even require, Internet service providers and other entities to monitor all electronic communications and share personal information with the government without effective oversight by claiming the sharing is for “cybersecurity purposes.” 

...

It isn't directly meant to be a new spy tool. But it is built so it can be instantly re-purposed as one. And when government is given a tool like this, it tends to find a reason to make use of it, like with the RICO law.

Now we should remember that laws need to be changed and updated. And cyber laws do need to move with the times. But their is a difference between what we need on the books to reasonably protect and serve society and what is just a means to easily control. When is it overreach? Miranda is an inconvenience to law enforcement. But it is a good one. It helps some people get the aid they need to not be abused. The need to get warrants before scouring your personal data is another important protection. This law leaves us vulnerable, while doing to little to actual protect us.


More from the Electronic Frontier Foundation on this.

Fight for the Future - CISPA is Back


Right now. Many people are planning to use today as a CISPA blackout, where they will have no presence online, in protest to the effect this law could have on online activity. I am still deciding whether to do this to (Yes. Based on my clock, I am over the deadline a little already. But time is relative, and it's still Sunday in some of the US still.) I am tempted to. But I am also tempted to see if I can write anything of use tomorrow, focused o this. We'll see.

Still, whether blacked out or not, CISPA is back. And it's passed the House of Representatives. President Obama has indicated he'd VETO it's current form if it passed the Senate. But if he's pressured to do otherwise... Or, if enough support is bought in the Senate, how close would they be to being able to override a veto?


As EFF above asks. Contact your senator now. Be sure they know where you stand, and why you stand there.

Be informed. Be involved. These are your rights.

Learning after last week.

This last week has been an intense news week in the United States. It quickly got to the point that we largely became oblivious to what was happening elsewhere in the world (Yes, and the obvious joke is, "And that's new?" ha ha). So, logically I would talk about what we've been missing (bombings in Iraq, Chinese earthquake, etc.). But no, I want to address what the US has been through this week.

So, Boston. Patriots Day turned terrifying in Boston. The two bombs placed near the finish lines, thankfully, did not kill more, but more than a hundred were cruelly injured; some lost limbs, and three died. As with any terror act, fear flittered through the city and on the news. And some news resources were eager to get out information, real, confirmed, or not. I have not seen a clear indication yet how many additional people spreading bad information or rumors endangered this week.

Then, slowly information, streamed out, the police and FBI narrowed down the threat, and the media was still too eager. Worse though pundits and talking heads couldn't resist starting fights and finding ways to push nonsensical agenda bullet-points.

• We shouldn't put in background checks on guns, because of this.
• We have to close our borders, because...foreigners.

Then we learned who the bombers were. Young men, two brothers, who immigrated from Chechnya and Russia with their families, who were also Muslim. And it ramps up.

• We need guns!
• See! We let these immigrants in and they are all terrorists!
• We need to catch them and hand them over to the military!

And finally they were caught up to. One brother dead, the other fled. Finally the other was found and captured. Injured, he was taken to hospital. The decision, as of now, is to not mirandize him...yet.

• He's an enemy combatant!
• People "like this" should never be mirandized.
• Muslims shouldn't be allowed to immigrate.

Now this is a complicated question to me, rights vs public safety. We have had a "public safety" rule for awhile now in the US. It allows for Miranda reading to be delayed, and extend holding people. What do I think of that?

Sigh...Miranda rights are important. And it was a hard right to get police to guarantee. Before it, many people had their constitutional rights abused. Many police abused the accused. And, many like the idea of rolling back Miranda, and have wanted to since it was established.

BUT. Public safety. The idea that law enforcement would delay the evidence taking process to determine risks seems acceptable; it depends though on if the fact it is pre-Miranda is respected. Sometimes their are abducted people to recover, a possible bomb threat, or shooter to find. If we are going to separate what is admissible in court from the public safety work, it makes sense. Public safety should trump a conviction.

BUT. But if the information being taken will be used as evidence, that is wrong. We need to respect out law and process; why else have them? As well, it does worry we a little. It's an exception to Miranda. Creating exceptions to basic critical legal rights is worrisome. Once you say their is a space where you can just hold people indefinitely, and can classify for the greater good, you have to be vigilant for abuse, or expansion of uses. We citizens need to be cognizant of what is going on and hold criminals and the systems accountable. It is one of our basic duties.

I hope we will soon see this guy mirandized, and then we can get to arraigning him. (At present, he is apparently awake and communicating. So we'll see.)

But it is curious this week how eager conservatives are to fight hard for the 2nd Amendment, while not particularly caring for the 5th. But I've seen a lot of contempt for plenty of the amendments (15th, 19th).

Veering over to immigration...I just wish it was surprising to see conservatives take any opportunity to demonize immigrants. Really digging deep into that dark place of human fear. I expect better, and seldom get it.

But there has been the good to. In the wake of those explosions, people were there for each other. Stopping bleeding, getting people to help, reaching out with compassion. It was heartening to see. It is a reminder of what we can and do do.

And the emergency services worked just as they are meant to. As one person put it, they are the people that run towards the screaming and explosions as a daily function. We out it to appreciate just what these government workers do and endure. Better than allowing them to be lambasted and belittled as unnecessary and wasteful. It is in times of disaster that we remember just why we rely on all of these people, and why people take these jobs, even when the pay isn't the best.

It was a very sad and painful week in Boston. But in the midst of it, we were shown some of the light that exists within our society.

And then their was Texas. A fertilizer plant exploding in West, Texas is...terrifying. The fact it was surrounded by a nursing home, school, park, housing, etc; that is something all the more shocking following the actual failure of the safety measures at the facility. Thankfully the worst case scenario did not play out and the deaths (known so far) are not as large as I could have imagined (See the before and after images.).

But what we've seen since is that inspections of this facility haven't been done in some time. But inspection and regulation are such a burden and such a hindrance to...eh...something...guess I'm being distracted from hating regulation and inspection at the moment. If Texas wants to draw in new business and people, it might want to care about the safety of Texans and business not literally detonating on them.

And in the wake of this, we've seen Republicans, who have denounced federal funds, and others that have blocked federal aid to disasters make an about face. Gov. Perry now is eager to receive funds. And Sen. Cruz, who opposed aid to New York and New Jersey post-Hurricane sees a need to expedite aid to his state. It's funny. No, it isn't. It's predicable.

But this tragedy also was a moment where people around West were there to help people escape the damage, rest, and begin recovering.

To the people in Massachusetts and Texas who acted to help those in need. Thanks. To those struck by these tragedies. My sympathies. Plenty of lessons to take away from this week, as we mourn, heal, rebuild, and make tomorrow a better place.

Marriage Equality in New Zealand

Marriage equality is now law in New Zealand. Still not in the United States. But we have to be thrilled these basic rights are now being acknowledged in one more country on this planet.

14 countries now! We have over 100 to go. Including the United States of America, and Australia (Really Aussies? You used to be cool.).

Here is the vote, and the resulting singing in celebration after (the Pokarekare Ana -- a traditional love song):



And here's an MP, Maurice Williamson, who responds to all the people, including religious leaders who attacked him and others on the looming equality vote (includes physics joke):