Here is why you should vote xxxxxx (insert Republican, Democrat, Pirate, Lizard…):

“It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see….”
“You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?”
“No,” said Ford, who by this time was a little more rational and coherent than he had been, having finally had the coffee forced down him, “nothing so simple. Nothing anything like so straightforward. On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people.”
“Odd,” said Arthur, “I thought you said it was a democracy.”
“I did,” said Ford. “It is.”
“So,” said Arthur, hoping he wasn’t sounding ridiculously obtuse, “why don’t the people get rid of the lizards?”
“It honestly doesn’t occur to them,” said Ford. “They’ve all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they’ve voted in more or less approximates to the government they want.”
“You mean they actually vote for the lizards?”
“Oh yes,” said Ford with a shrug, “of course.”
“But,” said Arthur, going for the big one again, “why?”
“Because if they didn’t vote for a lizard,” said Ford, “the wrong lizard might get in.”

Douglas Adams, in So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish (1984) Ch. 36

(From: http://mnmal.org/post/1416521946)

Happy World Vegan Day 2009!

Why is anybody taking these people seriously. That is my question when it comes to radical political organization consisting of a minority of a group, but speaking in the name of the whole group.

Today I listened to my favorite podcast Democracy Now! and I heard this story:

So, curious I am, I started reading about the American Medical Association. Of course they are just an example of a systematic problem, where priorities are totally screwed up. Why would organization that is focusing on a salary of its members be at all concerned about the quality of the service the members provide. As long as they have a guaranteed business, everything is ok. And they do. People will keep on getting sick. The AMA and its members make sure that is the case by fixing symptoms instead of showing and helping people how to live a healthy life. Actually, the problem is that if you live a healthy life, that is one less client for the AMA members. So, no wonder they don’t want the system to change. Who cares about the 50 million uninsured in USA, where there are 250 or more million that happily pay their dues. Of course, the politicians have no problem participating in this scheme, since they get money from the drug and insurance companies. Also, how can AMA talk in the name of doctors, while it only represents about a sixth of the actual doctors.

As Ralph Nader points out, if USA would replace the current health care system with a single payer one, the same amount of money per person would pay about double of what other countries pay for about the same level of service. Just think about it. Is it really so much more expensive to be a doctor in USA than in France, Japan, or UK? If it is, well, US doctors should fix that. Other industries are trying to minimize the costs, why would healthcare be different.

Now, here are some typical complains people have against a single payer systems:

You have to wait to see the doctor

• Well, I clearly remember so far every single time I wanted / needed to see the doctor, I had to wait. For example, when I got a nasty wasp sting, I had to go to the urgent care center, where I waited about two hours fainting in the waiting room. The nurse came out to check on me every once in a while, but that was it. Also, to get a checkup to a dermatologist, I had to wait 6 months and to get a physical, I had to wait 4 months. 4 months for a physical? Why? Because schools have physical exams, so all the doctors are booked for like 4 months.

Government bureaucrat makes decisions on your health

• How is that different from the current system, except that the bureaucrat works for a health insurance, whose aim is to minimize the amount of money they pay. My insurance for example does not pay for STD tests unless you are symptomatic. Imagine that you contract AIDS and you are not symptomatic. Wouldn’t you want to know that ASAP? And this is just one example.

Single payer system would waste a lot of money

• As opposed to the $350 billion that is wasted now?

There would be no innovation

• Yes, if you slash NIH budget. But, are you saying there is no innovation in space exploration, aviation, weapons, etc?

Quality of health care would go down

• If the quality of health care is so great, then why is the life expectancy in USA lower than the life expectancy in most industrialized single payer countries. It is actually lower than in Israel and people in Israel are being attacked by terrorists.

And so on. Why are we even talking about this? The current system has been proven to be bad. Its cost increases three times the rate of inflation, the quality is at the lower end of the industrialized world, the emphasis is on fixing symptoms instead of curing disease, and finally there are 50 million people in this system that don’t have access to it. So, why does a minority of people with an obvious conflict of interest deciding this?

Sorry about all the videos lately, but looks like some really good stuff out there.

There are several politicians in the world that are just so boxed in their private universe that whatever they do is somehow justified. A typical examples are US politicians that support the coal industry. As a consumer of electricity in US, I am part of the problem. However, short of not using electricity and protest, there is not much I can do. These politicians, on the other hand, do have power to make the change. But they seem to refuse to do that. Cynic in me would consider this to be caused by the politicians being payed by the evil-doers, but I sure hope that the reason is that the politicians are just not informed. How could anybody sacrifice the parks, the rivers, the drinking water, the air, and so on and be complacent in destroying the world for their children and their children’s children.

To make my point even stronger, watch this video and consider these politicians.

I finally found the air freshener I like. It is perfect. It most certainly covers any other smell. Don’t trust me? Watch the commercial for it.

I listened to several great talks lately. Here are some of my favorite speakers.

• Noam Chomsky (Example talk)
• David Korten (Example talk)
• Howard Zin (Example talk)

Excellent talk by Howard Zinn on “War and Social Justice” as broadcasted by Democracy Now!. Please watch/listen to this talk and support Amy Goodman and Democracy Now! for its excellent work in the independent journalism.

Today is an International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. It is sad that in 2008 we still have to worry about this. But unfortunately today women are still prosecuted for anything from trying to apply for “men” jobs to trying to decide what to do with their bodies and their health. And they are still traded as objects.

Women are in several regards still treated as a secondary citizens. And this is not only promoted by men. There are several women who continue to propagate this stereotype. For example, the Kansas State Senator Kay O’Connor said publicly that “Men should take care of women, and if men were taking care of women (today) we wouldn’t have to vote.” But this is not an isolated case. Women in public commonly downplay the role of women. They are traditionally viewed as the mothers and house wives. And a woman with a career is seen as an outsider and tough.

The most recent example of perpetuating of the weak women myth that I can think of happened during the Obama’s first press conference. In the middle of financial crisis there were several men and women journalists asking tough questions about economy. Out of three women (compared to four men), one Lynn Sweet switched from the problematic economic crisis to talk about where Obama will send his kids to school and what type of dog he will buy. So, in the midst of the issues facing the new president, what this journalist finds important is the type of dog. I guess in her mind this is what women want to know. But this is just one example. If you want more example of perpetuating the weak women myth, just watch some women TV shows.

Finally, most weddings I went to, especially the religious ones, clearly stated that the woman will become man’s property with the wedding. If something is your property then there is no reason to treat it with respect. Te woman becomes an object and therefore it is ok to, well, do to it whatever you want.

So, society has to grow up and stop treating women as a secondary citizens. The society should condemn violence of any kind, especially when it includes physical or psychological torture. Also, any kind of notion that women are weaker, property, or objects, should be eradicated. This includes for both men and women participants of society.

But to wrap this up, let’s just make sure that we are nice to each other. Furthermore, let’s do something special today. For example, smile to a stranger, or hug somebody. And don’t forget to say some nice words to anybody you see.

Let me start by expressing my sincere disappointment with several proposals that passed across USA. They have to do with amending the state constitution to add a clear discrimination. This is understandable for the random bigot states, but it is really incredible that something like this happened in California. California is probably the most progressive state in the US, but looks like there is a large enough number of homophobic and discriminating people that something like this can pass. Unbelievable.

But, let me ask you something else. Regardless if you believe with discriminating proposals or not, how can the state constitution be modified by a simple and actually weak majority? By weak, I mean less than 50% of voters. In California there are over 17 million voters and only something over 5 million voted for this proposal. I usually associate a modification of constitution with a two third majority.

Now, this is where it gets weird. There was a “measure B” on the ballot, which has to do with a specific improvement of public transportation around the city of San Jose. It does not matter if you agree with it or not, but here is the interesting part. In order to pass this measure, you need a two third majority. And since only 66.41% people voted yes, the measure lost. By .25%.

Ok, now, let’s compare these two referendums. The amending of constitution requires a simple majority, while the referendum on spending some money requires two third majority. Think about this one for a second. Constitution versus spending money. Human rights… Money… Now you know where the priorities are. Think about this as you are contemplating a 850 billion dollar bailout for the financial industry without a referendum.

Human rights should always be protected. Any constitutional change that limits human rights should be passed extremely carefully. At least two thirds majority if not a two thirds of all the registered voters. On the other hand, financial conservancy is a good thing, but it if spending large amounts of money to bail out car companies and spend enormous amount of money to build roads without any referendums, it is interesting that this require two thirds majority.

Today is an election day in USA. Here in California, people will most likely elect the “that guy” as opposed to “that other guy”. In any case, make sure to
GO OUT AND VOTE! and HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

I don’t really want to tell you who to vote or what other measures and propositions to vote yes or no on. I would like to ask you something though. Either vote for something, that you believe it, even if that is a candidate that does not stand a chance, or if you vote for the least bad, make sure to keep them accountable.

Most people talk about keeping politicians accountable, but they don’t really act on it. For example, a recent minority party suddenly become a majority claiming that they will do a sweeping changes that people want. Once they came in power they actually supported most of the extremely bad policies. Some of them were so bad that the previous majority did not managed to pass. And there is no accountability, since the same new majority will probably be even stronger this time around. Their excuse is that they do not have big enough majority and that the president will veto things. But, what I really think is that they are afraid of losing their precious money from their supporters. Remember, it is not the people who elect a candidate but their financial supporters.

So, if you are a USA citizen, do your civic duty and vote. Then, make sure to get your vote counted. And I don’t mean by taking photos of ballots or doing all this other things to prevent voting fraud. Make sure your vote is counted, by making sure the things you are voting for actually do happen. Vote based on issues and not a person.

Finally, I heard of this and I think everybody should join the Million Mad March. It is a

one million angry people to gather with us in the streets of their state capitals and march in protest of the direction that our country has taken, and the dissection of the people’s role, towards what seems to be our eventual removal from the political system meant to protect and represent us.

So, one more timemake sure to
GO OUT AND VOTE! and HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

I love “I’m a Mac…” commercials. So, I was super happy when I saw those:

Make sure to see other ones too:

• Another one
• and another one
• and yet another one
• More videos..

And make sure if you are in California to vote No on Prop 8. And when voting, make sure to vote Yes on Prop 1a and Yes on Prop 2.

It started! “If you are not with us, you are against us…” Isn’t that so. Well, looks like people that do not agree with establishment will be put to jail. Among them my favorite journalist and an awesome person Amy Goodman. Why, well, because she is trying to show public how things like 1st amendment and various other freedoms are great for invading countries, but prosecuted with a military force in this country. Be careful Glenn Greenwald, you are next!

• Scenes from St. Paul — Democracy Now’s Amy Goodman arrested
• Amy Goodman and Two Democracy Now! Producers Unlawfully Arrested At the RNC

Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfuly detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman’s crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

Please help Amy spread freedom!

Here are some random pages I saw and I thought were cool/funny/interesting/crazy:

• Pay off your share of the US national debt

Transportation

• Bike to work is healthy
• Energy cost of movement
• Live longer, run
• Cool and scary photos of traffic from space

Vegan

• Naked chicks protesting against UK guards wearing fur
• E. coli in Whole Foods beef

Social Security Number

• Protect your SSN
• How secure is your SSN

My favorite politician did it again. She managed to prove one more time that either there is no intelligent design, or the designer wanted to make its subject not intelligent. I mean, seriously… Just watch her video:

I guess she is trying to make the whole thing sound like some kind of communist country, but really beside the “government jobs” part it actually sounds really good. I would much rather take public transportation. I would much rather live in the city.

However, let’s play with her statement a little bit. My favorite politician seem to be in favor of Americans being uneducated, moving to the suburban isolation, live in the giant single family monstrosities, and take ASSUVs to their army contractor and oil jobs. Oh, how happy the world would be.