Health Care Reform Special Comment

On October 7th, 2009 Keith Olbermann dedicated the entire episode of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" to a Special Comment on the issue of Health Care Reform In the United States. The show  was eloquent, thought provoking and moving to the point of  heart wrenching at times but most important of all it was informative. Thankfully, no screaming, no arguing just a man, a son, a citizen reaching out to do whatever he could to make you take a breath and think a moment about what it is we are really debating here. And I for one will be forever thankful. Unfortunately, for me the issue of Health Care hits a little too close to home for me to be to open minded about it I suppose. I have noticed that I mostly stay quiet on this issue...at least publicly... it wasn't conscious... I didn't even realize it until I sat down to write this post... some things are just like that I suppose. I am one of those people being debated about in the halls of Washington and for that matter so is most of my family... though we have been blessed by great humor, great love and a wealth of fun experiences one thing I/we have not been blessed with is great health....that's just how it goes sometimes. For most of my life I have waded through the hell that is the American Health Care System, both during flush time and not... and I am always painfully aware of just how lucky I have been to be here in the U.S while dealing with all of it. In fact I think I even used that argument on myself as a sort of coping mechanism... but as the years have gone on and the system has only gotten worse it has become harder and harder to admit to myself that really is not the case... that is not to say that there are not far worse places to be from while battling poor health of one sort or another... but the truth is that is just not good enough. We should, must and can do better...not just here, everywhere really...but especially here as we are also the richest nation on Earth at the moment. The whole issue is sickening really (no pun intended of course)... iThis is an issue that goes to the core of who we are and who we hope to be, it should go beyond the mere politics of winning, beyond knee-jerk reactions & name-calling, beyond Right & Left...Health Care for All is fundamental core humanity, beyond Right & Left... providing Health Care to all who need it is as basic as it gets... in fact is is not an "issue" at all, but a simple matter of right & wrong the rest is just the details.

 Please take the time now if you have not done so already to watch the entirety of this episode. I am providing the entire episode for you here. Please watch.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Offsets are a CROC

WELCOME TO ANOTHER INSTALLMENT OF....

"IN THE LAND OF FUNNY... 

                               NOT SO FUNNY"

I love this video! This is exactly what has been making my brain itch ever since the whole "Carbon Offset" thing came to be. It just boggles my mind what lengths we, the Government & Corporations will go to to be able to continue to play the ostrich in the sand game and tell ourselves everything thing is okie-dokie... "no environmental problems here, see we now have offsets, all better!"

Now before you even say it, I know don't get me wrong I am aware that it is better to have Carbon Offsets than not, but come on isn't this just the strangest way of fixing this self-created dilemma we now find ourselves in?

Well, either way, whatever you believe regarding the whole "Offset" thing, one thing you can't deny is that this is one damn funny video. Enjoy....



"If you do something good for the environment, does it make any sense that you should then be entitled to do something bad to the environment?

Of course it doesn’t. And yet that is basically what corporate polluters are pushing for as climate legislation makes its way through Congress. Rather than making required pollution cuts, they want to use “carbon offsets,” which would essentially allow them to continue their dirty, polluting business as usual while outsourcing green jobs and cleaner skies elsewhere…mostly overseas!

Amazingly, despite the fact that offsets could totally undermine our efforts to combat global warming –letting polluters increase greenhouse gas emissions for years to come – there is now a group out there advocating carbon offsets be made available to individuals, so that regular folks can also be entitled to do something bad to the environment if they do something good for it. The group is called the Carbon Regulatory Offset Committee (CROC). Check out this video from their charismatic spokesman, Carl Cordova:



Offsets work like this: rather than making required emissions reductions, polluters outsource their obligations – paying others to protect forests overseas, for instance. The flaws in this scheme are manifold. Aside from allowing polluters to evade their responsibility to reduce their emissions as quickly as possible in order to prevent runaway global warming, offsets are difficult to measure and verify.

How much forest, a living ecosystem that is constantly changing, do you have to protect to equal a ton of carbon? How do you make sure it gets protected over the long-term? If it burns in a totally natural forest fire, does it still count as an offset? Most importantly, how do you make sure the same amount of deforestation doesn’t just happen somewhere else instead?

You really need to check out TheCROC.org to appreciate just how insane offsets are."

8 years..."Where Do We Go From Here"...

Today is a day for thought, remembrance, reverence and awareness. As we remember that horrible day, the many who left us, and those who lost loved ones...take a silent moment to yourself offering silent strength on this extremely hard day. And too re...member that we are still fighting two wars in it's name...right or wrong... many soldiers are far from home, far from their loved ones.


So while pausing to reflect, offer silence, or whatever you will be doing today to remember that terribly hard day...remember too that we still bleed from this wound. Many people, from many countries, will not see those they love again..at least not on this plane. So please take a moment out of our self-made distracting lives to think of those lost due to ignorance & hate, those we have lost & will lose on the battlefield
Both soldier & civilian, both just & unjust, both war wounded soldiers & the sick untreated heroes of 9/11 today we should give pause & prayer to the 8 year wound which still bleeds. It is the very least we can do on a day such as this...during times such as these. peace.



There is still much to do and so much to repair both politically & internationally, but today for quiet reflection, acknowledgment & thoughts of future actions to find true justice.
Today we think, Tomorrow we act!

That tragic day we found out who we were as a country and as a people. in an instant we learned who we truly were. Most rallied together as one to do all that they could, while others saw only self-serving opportunity from horror. Neither group should ever be forgotten. Those true heroes that put others welfare above their own deserve to not only be remembered but treated as the true heroes they were. Their actions should not be taken for granted. And it is a black mark on each and every one of us for allowing them to go on without the healthcare many of them so desperately need. By rushing in as they did, with no regard for personal consequences, and consequences˚ there were... with only thoughts of saving both friends and strangers alike they showed us what it really meant to be human. And it made me proud to not only be American on that day but more importantly it made me feel proud to be a part of the Human Race. Sadly, that pride was used against us by the greedy, selfish, and corrupt. This too should never be forgotten, and as we continue to struggle with the "War on Terror" that is currently being played out in two separate full blown wars (as well as dozens "covert" operations around the world.), one that made sense (if war can ever really make sense) or at least had something to do with the terrorism of 9/11, Afghanistan and one that made/makes no sense at all in connection with the "War on Terror" that being Iraq, which was a Secular country that gave no love & no haven to terrorist and love American & America for that matter... at least until we showed up and now the broken country is lousy with terrorists. No thanks is necessary Iraq it was our pleasure....or at least it was Cheney, Rummy, Condy, Bushy, Wolfy &Scooter's˚˚ pleasure (aren't they just a fun bunch? so fun and quirky? You would never know it by their cute nicknames that they were all actually War Criminals...but I digress). And no before you even try and say it let me be clear, NO I DO/DID NOT LIKE Saddam Hussein OR HIS VISCOUS CRIMINAL WAY OF RUNNING IRAQ! And yes, it is a wonderful thing that neither Saddam Hussein nor his son's can call themselves the leader of Iraq ever again˚˚˚ nor torture any Iraqis ever again. Unfortunately, the United States apparently picked up where he left off acting on orders from the White House, U.S. Military began a torture program of their own†. Though the preferred the nomenclature of the Bush Jr. Administration was "Enhanced Interrogations" ( but an illegal naked beating by any other name doth smell as sweet?). Although truth be told (no pun intended of course) I think the rebranding attempt would have worked if only they had made it's official euphemism...ahem... I mean nomenclature, just a little more cutesy and likable, ya know they needed to add a y or two at the end of the name or names, like the rest of the gang.

Then perhaps we might not have noticed perhaps, just how illegal things had gotten; Or just how far from U.S. norms and values they had strayed. If only they had remembered the power of the "y" we might not have ever really paid attention (I mean really, it's not the sort of thing we had normally liked to do right?), but alas they didn't and we did. The world as well as the country paid attention...stood up and NO! No more torture, this is wrong... this isn't us.... this is right.... this isn't working is it? ahem... And since we bothered to look away from our latest text message, turned off the music on our iPhone, put down our cafe mocha latte deluxe with half cafe & necturine extract light foam, logged off facebook and turned away from TMZ nightly update, notice the horrors the Bushy Administration inflicted on this country & the world and choose hope, change and a new direction with old improved values & Ideals, the least our new fearless leader can do is show us true justice does exist and what was once wrong can be put right again! In other words the past Administrations many illegal, not to mention highly immoral, actions have consequences too. And those that did harm in our name deserve to be brought to a real justice. This world of ours needs...craves real and lasting peace...we all do...and as one of the best example of a Human-Being, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. so wisely said: "Without justice, there can be no peace. He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it."





I know the Obama Administration is far far from evil, obviously. I believe they truly want to do good deeds in the name of mankind. I have a faith in this Administrations government that I haven't had my entire life. That said I hope and pray every day that I am not being one of those blind followers. Believing and seeing only the beautiful rhetoric than realities of action on the ground. And though often Obama has proved that my faith, hope in him is not without merit, that is not to say there have been times that I have found him lacking in overt strength of action in response and conviction. Only time will tell. I know practically no other president has had to face as many calamities all at once as this president & his administration has. But he/ they must know that the old ways haven't worked for us very well and definitely not lately. We need to strongly embrace a new way of affirming our convictions, a new way of settling problems, a new way of handling embarrassing choices by past administrations....no longer can we afford to wipe these damaging embarrassments under the proverbial table (especially the one in the oval office) we must learn to face our past and take accountability for our past misdeeds. I only hope President Obama sees this as clearly as I do. Real justice must finally come for us as a nation, as well as a people, to be able to move forward and thrive...to be able to grow and survive.
Dear Readers today is a very heavy day. The eleventh or September till the end of time should be as such. And the people and event must be remembered and cared for. That said we are not the only country, the only people who seek a life free from pain, fear and terror. The entire living planet seeks the refuge of a peaceful existence. The question is are we willing to do are part to make the desire a reality? Do we...does this Administration have the fortitude to fight for the peace we all so desperately want and need. I sure hope so. If not there will be a wake of hard times in Earth's future and our part in it will be in question. So I choose to believe in the possibility of now...and the strength of conviction of President Barak Obama and his Administration. Today of all days we should include them in our thoughts of peace and love. They have much on their plates...more I am sure then we could possibly conceive of or even fathom.
So with all these things in mind I leave you with this.... Two more wondrous quotes from one of the strongest, most powerful man the world has been blessed to know:


"Power at it's best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at it's best is love correcting everything that stands against love."
- Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr
Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? 1967




"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere"
- Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963


Peace be with you fellow strangers and friends of RandomCrazy Creatives


˚ Most of the rescue workers now have lifelong serious health problems & what's worse many of not most do not have proper Health insurance coverage so go without medicine and without the health care they so deserve...though I believe we all deserve to have health coverage, but that is another topic for another day.

˚˚ What no y name for Scooter? No wonder they threw him to the wolves and is currently in jail for crimes of treason...oh wait he's not...they pardoned him....awwwww...isn't that cute.

˚˚˚ Saddam Hussein was captured by U.S. forces on December 13, 2003. Later brought to trial by the interim Iraqi government (set up by U.S. led forces). November 5, 2006 Saddam was convicted of charges related to the 1982 killings of 148 Iraqi Shi'ites and was sentenced to death by hanging. December 30, 2006 Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti died by execution.

†In all, 98 detainees have died while in U.S. hands, with 34 identified as homicides, at least eight of which were tortured to death…

answers at the tip of a sword

                we are corroding
            from within
                 finding answers....
                    at the tip                    of
                                                        a
                                                              s
            where generals                              w
                   and fools                                  o
                                 tread                           r
             leaving  the  heavy                            d
          stuff


•           for us
          monsters who pass
            in the night
    a feather  in the cap
          for the chief

                                                                       
 •            the  assassin

               and me

    •

The Brighter Side of a Bad Day

As you well know RandomCrazy Creatives has been silent this past month, this is due to the fact that RandomCrazy Creatives is undergoing major changes in the coming months not least of which is the buying of another company that is now under the RandomCrazy Creatives umbrella. All soon to be released...I promise dear readers that you will be the first to learn of RandomCrazy's coming changes...oh boy...until then....shhhhh......

However, I feel compelled to say something given today's sad events. We...the believers in peace, justice, and the pursuit and faith in a better coming day for all lost one of it's strongest warriors... Senator Edward M. Kennedy... Uncle Teddy did more then speak of ideals he vigorously fought for them his entire life. He was such a powerful advocate for a more gentile progressive world that those on the right tried to make him into nothing but a tasteless punchline...thankfully they did not succeed to those of us paying attention.

He truly cared for each and every human being and the world in which we inhabit. So today is a very sad day indeed...though through his actions and his example legions raised in his shadow have risen to carry on the fight.

That said draw comfort:

“For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives and the dream shall never die” – Senator Ted Kennedy addressing the Democratic National Convention


and on news of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy
Political allies and rivals alike paid tribute to the longtime Democratic senator from Massachusetts.


* President Barak Obama:

"His extraordinary life on this Earth has come to an end. And the extraordinary good that he did lives on."

Nancy Reagan, former first lady:

"Given our political differences, people are sometimes surprised by how close Ronnie and I have been to the Kennedy family. But Ronnie and Ted could always find common ground, and they had great respect for one another. In recent years, Ted and I found our common ground in stem cell research, and I considered him an ally and a dear friend. I will miss him."

* Sen. John F. Kerry, the seasoned junior senator from Massachusetts and Democratic nominee for president in 2004:

"He taught us how to fight, how to laugh, how to treat each other, and how to turn idealism into action, and in these last 14 months he taught us much more about how to live life, sailing into the wind one last time."

* Secretary of StateHillary Rodham Clinton, whose 2008 presidential campaign suffered a setback when Kennedy endorsed her rival, Barack Obama, for the Democratic nomination:

"He inspired generation after generation of young Americans to enter public service, to stand up for justice and to fight for progress. And he was a legislator without peer, who understood both when to stand his ground and when to seek out the common ground on which compromise and progress is built."

* Former President Jimmy Carter, who won the 1980 Democratic presidential nomination over Kennedy:

"Sen. Kennedy was a passionate voice for the citizens of Massachusetts and an unwavering advocate for the millions of less fortunate in our country. The courage and dignity he exhibited in his fight with cancer was surpassed only by his lifelong commitment and service to his country."

* Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.):

"Ted Kennedy was a mentor, a guiding light, and a close friend -- we all loved the man. In the Senate, Ted Kennedy was our sun -- the center of our universe. To be pulled by his strong gravitational field, to bask in his warmth was a privilege, an honor, and, for many of us, even a life-changing experience."

* Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.):

"My friend, Ted Kennedy, was famous before he was accomplished. But by the end of his life he had become irreplaceable in the institution he loved and in the affections of its members. He grew up in the long shadow of his brothers, but found a way to be useful to his country in ways that will outlast their accomplishments."

* Vice President Joe Biden, who served alongside Kennedy in the Senate for many years, speaking at an event in Washington:

"He was kind of like an anchor. . . . I don't think we shall ever see his like again."

* Senate Majority Whip Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.):

"His voice roared as he battled for the poor and the victims of injustice yet he had a smile that could light a room, a laugh that would draw a crowd and a heart always ready to share your sorrow."

* Mitt Romney, former Republican governor of Massachusetts, who challenged Kennedy for his Senate seat in 1994 and who sought the 2008 GOP presidential nomination:

"In 1994, I joined the long list of those who ran against Ted and came up short. But he was the kind of man you could like even if he was your adversary."