July 2012
38 posts
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The Touching Story Behind Jeff and MacKenzie... →
Although LGBTQ individuals are at the forefront of this great work - fight for civil rights - allies are important for this cause as well. Great to see that the Bezoses are showing their support with action (well, money).
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A New Twist on Scout's Honor: Standing Up for Gay... →
Fantastic movement by allies.
I must break from my brothers; my lifelong friends. I can no longer stand with them as a proud Eagle Scout. Though I will retain the values, morals and skills that scouting has taught me, I cannot, in good conscience, remain an Eagle. That honor has been corrupted by the BSA’s blatant discrimination and bigotry. The BSA’s policy of “not granting...
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Letter to the Aspiring Social Worker
deonahooper:
I don’t claim to know about all things social work, but I have learned some life lessons along the way that have shaped who I am, my faith, and my desire to help others.
Do we choose this profession or does it choose us? I believe that everyone who enters this profession do so because of something in their background that enrages that desire to change injustices, speak up for those...
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Safe From Fire, but Not Guns →
This sounds pretty reasonable, no?
Nicholas Kristof (via NYTimes):
A recent survey found that more than 70 percent of N.R.A. members approve of criminal background checks for would-be gun owners. That suggests broad backing for one of the most crucial steps: a universal background check for all gun buyers, even when buying from private citizens. I’d also like to see us adopt Canada’s...
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More progress for military families
As if I needed another reason to love the Obama administration!
NASW (National Association of Social Workers) sign onto the Joining Forces initiative (via DoD):
Similar to agreements doctors’ and nurses’ associations have made with Joining Forces, the NASW, which represents more than 650,000 social workers, has pledged support beginning this fall, including:
Launching a free, online training...
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WatchSeriously, this is badass. (via ShortFormBlog)
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http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/07/som... →
I really like this Dish reader’s rant:
I’m so sick of arguments like Adam Ozimek’s that basically say “you won’t be able to keep everyone determined to get a gun from getting one, so therefore gun regulations are pointless.” It’s just absurd.
“Strong illegality wouldn’t have stopped [Holmes],” Ozimek says, pointing to the home-made...
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More guns, more suicides →
Another Harold Pollack post over at TIE:
Household gun possession is a powerful predictor of suicide for the actual gun owner, as well as for the owner’s spouse and other family members. Given widespread gun ownership, this is therefore a serious public health problem. Although this is hardly an airtight comparison, the fifteen states with the highest rates of gun ownership have about twice the...
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Another Gun Tragedy →
Harold Pollack from The Incidental Economist writes about his quick review of gun violence in Chicago a few years ago:
The Chicago police certainly seize some frightening weapons. Yet gang-bangers don’t generally kill with semi-automatic rifles. You don’t need an AR-15 to kill someone in a rival crew. You don’t need a high-capacity, rapid-reloading clip, either. Criminals generally have little...
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Health Insurance Prices For Women Set To Drop →
Another reason why I support the ACA.
Under the health care overhaul, the practice is banned starting in 2014. But according to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s April health tracking poll, only 35 percent of people are aware of this fact. (Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the foundation.)
Like or loathe the recent Supreme Court decision that the law is...
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Boy Scouts Reaffirm Ban On Open Gays; Call It... →
To this I say: Fuck you, Boyscouts! You know what the “absolute best policy” actually is? Inclusion, acceptance, non-bigotry, and respect.
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Five Obamacare Myths →
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Four Biggest Government Spending Myths Debunked →
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The first gay military wedding →
Love, love, love this story.
It’s pretty heartbreaking to read about their failed marriages (partially?) due to their attempts to suppress/hide/ignore their true sexual orientation, but it’s incredible to read about the love they share for one another and their children and the joy they’ve finally found.
This is one more step in the right direction for true equality in our...
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The Story Of Obama And The Kiss Cam →
Feel-good story of the week.
Seriously, how can you not love them? *sigh*
Sans internet
No internet at home, and tumblr blocked at work means a backlog of posts. #firstworldproblems
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Let's Draft Our Kids →
The title is a bit misleading because Thomas E. Ricks writes of the draft as more of a national service corps rather than a military draft per se, but the point is taken. Ricks lays out the reasons why a national draft may be worth it.
Seeing how only ~1% of the U.S. population is in the armed services, most of the country can have feelings about our war efforts without having much personal stake...
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More important healthcare reads
Again, from Austin Frakt over at TIE:
The Supreme Court’s Historic Ruling on the Affordable Care Act by Lawrence O. Gostin, JD in JAMA
The Moral Duty to Buy Health Insurance by Tina Rulli, PhD; Ezekiel J. Emanuel, MD, PhD; David Wendler, PhD in JAMA
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Good healthcare reads
Go over to Austin Frakt’s post at The Incidental Economist to see the reading list Ezekiel Emanuel assigned for his Health Policy and the Affordable Care Act Course.
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Spam the Homophobic Frank Ocean Haters With Love →
Loving this concept!
Immediately after Ocean published those words he began to re-tweet the homophobic tweets aimed at him. And that’s where Åström and Hatetweetstofrankocean.com comes in.
Visitors to his site can scroll through the gallery of hateful tweets and when compelled can fight the hate with love.
Such as:
“it’s not who you love - it’s that you love that truly matters.”
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“President Obama is not running against the Almighty. He is running against the...”
– Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley (via kileyrae)
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“No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow.”
– Alice Walker
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182 of President Obama's Accomplishments! With... →
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Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Hero →
“Staying power” is something that Ginsburg has. As Jeffrey Toobin says in this week’s Political Scene podcast, “Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seventy-nine. She is about five feet tall, eighty pounds, she has had every disease known to humanity. She is as tough as nails.” She made her way at a time when you could have a legal education from Harvard and Columbia and still be turned down for a job...
“Idleness is not just a vacation, an indulgence or a vice; it is as indispensable...”
– The ‘Busy’ Trap by Tim Kreider via NYTimes
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“I believe in the pursuit of happiness. Not its attainment, nor its final...”
– Andrew Sullivan
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http://healthreform.kff.org/quizzes/health-reform-q... →
Do you understand what the Affordable Care Act does and does not do? Take the quiz.
Thank goodness I got a 10/10; otherwise, I’d be ashamed of myself.
So few Americans actually do get it (Kaiser Family Foundation report here).
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Reading List: Anderson Cooper coming out publicly
I’m sure you’ve all read about this already, but I just want to put it on my tumblr for longevity’s sake. It really makes my heart swell that prominent individuals who are gay are coming out publicly because it helps to break down stereotypes and prejudices. It humanizes something that is unfortunately still scary for many. It helps to get us to a place where we can see people...
