1920's 2: electric boogaloo. Good luck everyone. Wish it didn't have to be this way. Do what you can to prepare your families and your communities, because this is going to hurt.
If we get the chance in the 1930s, let's make sure we pull an FDR and not a Hitler, please?
My experience says that I don’t have the money to pay for everyone who won’t be able to pay me back. So I’ll pay for the things I need and use, and let everyone else do the same.
You quite literally pay for everyone when you pay private health insurance anyway. The math works out that either you are unfortunate enough to need care and everyone else pays for you, or you don't need extensive care and you pay for people that need it more. This is the same for privately funded or publicly funded healthcare.
The difference is that under the private healthcare system you also pay a whole bunch of salesmen, managers, investors, and executives, who can choose to delay or deny your care based on their ~~professional medical opinion~~ parasitic whim. Oh, and you also pay into all the super PACs and marketing agencies that reinforce the myth that the system is currently working for anyone.
The move, the department has said, is expected to save $1.8 billion from the agency’s $1.7 trillion annual budget — about one-tenth of 1%.
This story has been corrected to show the savings is about one-tenth of 1%, not about 1%.
Good stuff AP, fixing their mistake and lampshading the idea that this has anything to do with budget.
Dismantling the Department of Health for a savings of ~0.1% will surely help all of the people suffering in debt or without treatment from the American healthcare system.
If you're a federal worker, please, do your best to force them to walk you out the door. Work together. If we get real lucky and things turn around, many of you will have one hell of a class action lawsuit on your hands. Talk to lawyers. Sue for wrongful termination, discrimination, etc.
Everyone else, but especially healthcare workers - talk to your unions and associations! If you don't have one, join or start one! Show up to the meetings! Doctors, nurses, aides, many of you are already organized around your shared interests. Take advantage of that.
The system was broken from the start but it took a beating during the pandemic. Many of you have seen how things have gotten worse than they were.
With leadership like this, it's only downhill. Less staff and support. More desperate, angry, or misinformed patients. ICE agents on the unit, police interrogating miscarriage survivors and OBGYN staff, medication and supply shortages even if we don't see a second pandemic.
Talk to each other, talk to your reps and your leaders and your politicians. Stay safe and stay strong.
Yeah, I understand the possibility that a comment like that just isn't worth responding to. Apathy is such a ubiquituous kneejerk response that it's basically the fediverse's equivalent of youtube's "First!!" comments.
But we need more productive discourse, and sometimes that requires addressing all the potentially cynical readers out there who will just read the headline, see the apathy in these comments, and continue on with their doomscroll without a moment's thought
It’s an ideological war. Most of it will look like talking until the talking pushes people to start acting. You can’t just skip ahead to the revolution and push the “riot” button, you have to convince people to act.
Everybody paying attention is already aware of these things.
They haven't been paying attention and no, they're not already aware. Not everyone in the nation is on the same page. Clearly.
I understand why you're trying to find reasons to be upset, and simplify the situation. But what are you actually trying to find here? What are you contributing?
What did MLK's "I have a dream" speech accomplish? What did Sophia Scholl's leaflets accomplish? What are you accomplishing, right here, right now, with this comment?
I am by no means elevating the senator's speech to that level of historical importance. But the point stands. It's an ideological war. It has to be fought with ideas. There is no other way.
To fight fascism is to fight especially when it feels like it accomplishes nothing. To fight an ideological war is not just to fight against your enemy - it is to fight for the hearts and minds of your friends.
I think it's important that we start filling the fediverse and the world with more productive discussion. It feels like every single post and thread around here is completely hijacked by the "centrist/leftist/third party voters" conversation.
The first comments you see on every news article aren't even about the article, it's unrelated complaints against the presumed opinions of other people who may or may not have voted, some of whom may have been bots or internationals or children.
It's wildly counterproductive. We need to move forward and really push for solidarity and meaningful solutions. We can't stop fascism by fighting each other.
He talked for a little over a day.
There'a a reason there was a 24 hour record to be broken in the first place. Standing and delivering a speech for 25 hours straight is a genuinely incredible physical and mental feat.
The talking is to hold up the Senate, give voices to seniors worried about losing social security, and to draw more attention to the absolutely broken state of our government.
It's an ideological war. Most of it will look like talking until the talking pushes people to start acting. You can't just skip ahead to the revolution and push the "riot" button, you have to convince people to act.
Government doesn't issue the ID for free, and needs to send it to a valid address. It's nothing more than an attempt to stop voters from voting. If they actually cared about preserving democracy, they would make the ID's free and easily accessible before requiring them to vote.
The more important issue is that it's not an issue. There are no indications that non-citizens or identity thieves have had any impact on federal elections. Voter fraud is simply not a problem, so new laws to stop voter fraud really only exist to stop voters.
someone should have continued after him because the nomination passed and i am sad again.
Another senator can't take over for Booker, only way it ends is when he cedes the floor. They were only able to ask questions to give him a break.
A man stood and spoke for over 24 hours straight and so many are dismissing it as nothing more than "performative"
This is what it looks like to fight. It's not perfect, it's not easy, it's not even clear if it will do anything. But it's something. It's someone standing up and forcing people to listen to the voices of the unheard.
That's what it looks like to fight. It's an ideological war for the soul and future of the nation - did you really think it would be simple, or easy? That we would have natural heroes and great victories?
Fight in whatever way you can. Yell from whatever rooftop you can find, including the senate floor. Kick and scream, even if it feels pointless. But don't stand around doing nothing but questioning the contributions of others. We need solidarity.
Keep on keepin' on my friend
Edit - whoosh? You're saying it'll be blamed on the democrats I think? Either way I don't think it'll be that easy this time. They fucked up too much stuff too fast, all while obviously in complete control. 'Oft evil will shall evil mar' and all that.
As terrible as this is and will be, I have hope we can change a lot of minds. Social security started from the ashes of the great depression. It can be done again.