Date

Barack Obama and the Nobel Peace Prize: What Was I Thinking?

barbara — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:04:53 -0500

barbara writes

Well, hot damn and hallelujah! Woke up this morning to the news that Barack Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Thought, “Wow, that’s a really excellent thing!” High-fived myself. Jaunty-walked, whistling all the way, to the kitchen to fetch a cup of fresh-brewed java.

Brought the coffee to my office, where I began reading online news and mostly lefty blogs, eager to join the celebration that was no doubt in full swing.

Not so fast, Sunshine.

“I thought the story was from The Onion,” I read.

“Too soon for this,” I read.

“He hasn’t done enough,” I read.

“He doesn’t deserve this. There’s war in Iraq and Afghanistan,” I read.

“Pretty words, no substance,” I read.

“The Nobel Committee must have an affirmative action quota,” I read.

More.

In memory of David

barbara — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 09:08:53 -0500

barbara writes

I wrote about David in the tiny hours of this morning. It really was a sucky piece of over-the-top prose. I pitched it. Among all the things I learned from him, high on that list is simplicity. I have a long way to go if I’m to master it.

Remember the story I told at David’s memorial service last October? The first time we made dinner together at his house, he handed me a tiny foil-wrapped package that contained a tiny chunk of leftover baked chicken. I didn’t want to offend him, but I couldn’t help asking, “So, do you think this will be enough?” And his immediate response, without a smidgeon of judgment or shaming, was this: “Oh, I guess I always figure that whatever I have is enough.”

He lived his too-short life living simply. What started as necessity became a life value. He was a steward of the earth by every definition.

I miss his so-soft voice, his gentleness, his spectacular smile, his hunger for knowledge that he fed each day, his essential goodness. Those things and his quiet footfalls that sometimes brought us abruptly together at a corner in the house, eliciting a small scream from me. He’d smile and say something like, “Hi. I live here.” And then he’d hold me for a moment.

One year ago today, he died.

One year ago today, those of us who loved him lost an extraordinary man who kept such a low profile, few ever understood that about him.

Some say hearts heal. Maybe so.

This is not a pretty story

barbara — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 20:20:41 -0500

barbara writes

(UPDATE: Don't ask, don't smell. Just go to this firedoglake link and do what needs to be done, please and thank you.)

This is not about David, though it certainly could have been. Until the last five years of his life, he had no health insurance. He couldn't afford it.

No, what follows is the HuffPost’s summary of a longer, must-read article that appeared Sunday in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal.

Bill Caudle, 39, enlisted in the Army so that he could get health insurance (to) help pay for his wife's ovarian cancer treatment, reports Mark Johnson of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Bill was laid off from his job at a plastics company in March, where he had worked for 20 years, and searched for a new job for a few months before signing up so that his wife and high school sweetheart, Michelle, would be guaranteed chemotherapy. On their own, the Caudles' insurance cost them $1,370 each month, which they could not afford on Michelle's part-time salary at a fast food restaurant.

The four-year commitment means Bill will miss all of his youngest daughter's four years of high school. Chelsea, the daughter, cried when her mother told her. Bill left for processing and basic training October 6. The next day, once he was officially processed, his Army health coverage started.

What’s wrong with this picture? I will tell you.

Back atcha, Dick

barbara — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:58:38 -0500

barbara writes

I have a new hero. He’s a retired general named Paul Eaton, who, according to HuffPost is a senior advisor to the National Security Network, which describes itself thus:

The National Security Network (NSN) was founded in June 2006 to revitalize America's national security policy, bringing cohesion and strategic focus to the progressive national security community.

Here's how it all started.

Darth Cheney has been fear-mongering again. It’s what he does. This time he took aim not at his hunting buddy but at the White House for “dithering while America’s armed forces are in danger.” Cheney went on to say that “President Obama now seems afraid to make a decision, and unable to provide his commander on the ground with the troops he needs to complete his mission.”

It seems Cheney has been a carbuncle on General Eaton’s behind for some time, and Eaton finally lanced the sucker with his pointed press release today: Don't miss the press release!

Did someone say public option???

barbara — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:24:31 -0500

barbara writes

I picked this up a short time ago at firedoglake. The group,“Billionaires for Wealthcare,” is seen crashing the AHIP (America’s Health Insurance Plans) conference today. Kind of like the “Sound of Music” thing with a political edge.

Have a good weekend.