Slightly Unhinged

Join the Citizens’ Posse

courtnaysb — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:27:12 +0000

Here’s your chance to let your voice be heard – join the Citizens’ Posse:

Click here to join: http://healthcareforamericanow.org/page/s/march9dc

Filed under: Advocacy, health, Politics Tagged: Advocacy, health care reform, political action, Politics

Don’t give up on the public option

courtnaysb — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 04:42:08 +0000

Our family’s health insurance premiums have risen more than 50% in the last 5 years and our deductible doubled again this year. While our out-of-pocket health care costs have skyrocketed, we’ve had no choice but to watch helplessly as our insurer has repeatedly limited our coverage and reduced our benefits. Like many Americans with pre-existing medical conditions, shopping around for a better deal on health insurance just isn’t an option for me. As dissatisfied as we may be with our insurance, we live in fear of losing it since we know that it would be impossible to replace in the current market. Given all this, it seems clear to me that the public option would be a vitally important component of any meaningful health care reform package.

Fortunately for the American people, it looks like we may now have an opportunity to revive the public option. In recent weeks, 34 senators and 120 members of the House have signed letters asking Congress to pass a public option through ‘reconciliation’ — a procedure that just requires a majority vote in the Senate. Polls consistently show that the majority of Americans want the public option (59% to 29% in the latest New York Times poll) and that support extends across party lines (80% of Democrats, 59% of Independents, and even 33% of Republicans). Besides being popular with the American people, the public option is the best option on the table to curb the skyrocketing health care costs that are putting so much strain on the budgets of American families and small businesses. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the various public option proposals in the House would save at least $25 billion without adding a dime to the national debt. Just as importantly, a public option would create competition in our health insurance market. If consumers were dissatisfied with the prices or service offered by private insurers, they’d have another choice. We need the public option to help keep the insurance companies in check.

There are several petitions circulating now to demonstrate citizen support for the public option. If you agree that the public option is vital to meaningful health care reform, please take a moment to sign:

http://bit.ly/c6rC9d

and

http://bit.ly/aKkqAi

Filed under: Advocacy, health, Politics Tagged: Advocacy, health care reform, political action, Politics

Down & Cried

courtnaysb — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 04:41:00 +0000

“Down & Cried” was one of my favorite tracks on last year’s Dearly Departed: True Lies in Song Unearthed from Lone Fir Cemetery benefit CD so I was pleased to see that Holcombe Waller is including it on his upcoming album-in-progress. If you haven’t heard it yet, you definitely need to check it out…especially now that he has it available for free streaming and downloading on his website. It really is a hauntingly beautiful song…the kind that stays with you with long after you first hear it. Also, if you like what you hear, listen to some of the other tracks from The Winter Songs (Album-in-Progress) and consider a pledge or a pre-order to help Holcombe complete the project. If you’re like me, you’re sick of all the commercial, over-produced crap you hear on the radio and it isn’t often you come across something that truly resonates with you. We need to support these talented, independent artists who are bucking the system and doing things their own way, producing the kind of music we want (and need) to hear.

Down & Cried | Holcombe Waller

Filed under: Music Tagged: Music

Don’t Let Senator Graham Block Fair Trials for Terrorism Suspects

courtnaysb — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 00:54:39 +0000

From Amnesty International USA:

Our sources tell us that any day now Senator Lindsey Graham’s appalling legislation (S. 2977) could be hitting the Senate floor. Graham’s proposal takes a back-door approach at stopping federal trials for those suspected of being involved in the September 11th terrorist attacks – instead of flat-out opposing action to move these detainees to facilities in the U.S., this legislation drains funding from the last hope we’ll have at fair September 11th trials.

If these men are guilty, then our federal courts will reach that determination. It is just wrong to cheat – and worse, even rob – them of their day in court. However, one-by-one we’re seeing the Senators we thought we could count on to uphold the rule of law, turning on those values and backing this devious proposal.

Last week, we asked you to pick up the phone and put both Senator Graham and the White House on notice that we would fight any attempt to backtrack on federal trials. Now that they’ve been warned, it’s our time to strike!

We need your help to shore up support for federal trials. There are 12 key Senators that we need to stand with us: representing New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Washington, Louisiana, Colorado, Indiana, North and South Dakota.

With their support, we can stop Graham’s legislation! Email these Senators now and urge them to stand for fair trials!

Even if you don’t live in one of these states, it is imperative that these Senators hear from you – this issue cuts to the heart of our democracy and affects us all. Of course, if you do happen to live in one of these states (or know someone who does), then we can’t do this without you!

If Senator Graham’s legislation continues to gain momentum, it will force Attorney General Eric Holder and President Obama into an impossible spot. They will have no choice but to accept military commissions as the only alternative to fair, federal trials.

And you and I both know the truth about military commissions…

They are a poor substitute for federal trials; devised by Senator Graham and other politicians, not the military!
The only things these kangaroo courts can accomplish are biased convictions and the prolonged cover-up of U.S.-sanctioned torture.
They don’t meet anyone’s standards for fairness – by U.S., international or U.S. military standards. In fact, they wholly undermine the international human rights framework!

It only takes a moment to fight back against the insanity!

Send an email to these 12 key Senators and tell them how important they are in our fight to protect fair, federal trials and human rights for all!

Filed under: Advocacy, Politics Tagged: Advocacy, political action, war on terror

Tell Congress: Patients Want & Need Health Care Reform

courtnaysb — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 16:05:47 +0000

From the National Patient Advocate Foundation:

President Obama convened a bipartisan health care reform summit with 40 Members of Congress on February 25^th. Discussion topics included: controlling costs, insurance reforms, reducing the deficit and expanding coverage. National Patient Advocate Foundation sent a letter to summit participants which is available at www.npaf.org.

As you know, Congress has been hard at work for more than a year now on comprehensive health insurance reform legislation. The House and Senate have both passed health insurance reform legislation in their respective chambers that will expand health insurance coverage to millions of uninsured Americans and provide patients with real protections against preexisting conditions and medical bankruptcy.

NPAF is hopeful that policy agreement will triumph over partisan politics in the days to come. All parties, Democrats, Republicans and Independents need to come to the table now to assure that health care reform is accomplished, and that the final bill contains insurance reforms that are critically important to patients. NPAF is asking members of both the House and Senate to include the following insurance reform features in any health insurance reform legislation:

Eliminate preexisting condition exclusions and waiting periods for individuals in every health insurance market no later than 2013;
Create and adequately fund a transitional high-risk pool until preexisting conditions and waiting periods are eliminated entirely;
Completely eliminate annual, monthly, and lifetime limits on coverage, whether on dollar value, services or disease specific; and
Cap out-of-pocket spending so that health insurance coverage is affordable for all patients.

We thank you for your outreach to your Members of Congress over the last several months sharing this important message but the work is not done! National Patient Advocate Foundation needs you to share the message below immediately with your Representative in the House and your two U.S. Senators. Please add your voice to the discussion and encourage your friends and family to do the same!

Click here to send a letter to your elected officials about this important issue.

Filed under: Advocacy, health, Politics Tagged: Advocacy, health care reform, political action