I'm never moving back to Iowa

I grew up in Iowa, and I've often reflected that many aspects of my time there were key to my success. I now feel that the state is one of the worst places to live in the country; conservative leaders have destroyed health care, education, and common sense. 

- The Republican legislature refused to accept medicaid expansion under Obama and the ACA as well as passing laws to undermine the ACA. Now the state's insurance markets are collapsing with only one insurer remaining in the state.

- The Republican legislature just passed an abortion bill. It doesn't allow abortion after the heartbeat is appreciated on ultrasound, ~6 weeks. Pretty much no woman knows she is pregnant before 6 weeks gestation. This effectively outlaws abortion in the state.

I'm ashamed of Iowa. The Republicans have decided that passing a conservative agenda is more important than the state's likely economic collapse. The insurance markets are self-destructing, women will be forced to have children they don't want and can't afford, and social programs have been systematically destroyed over the past 10 years.

I don't feel sorry for the people of Iowa. You elected these representatives. Now is the time to remember the farm language that you love to quote: you reap what you sow. Good luck.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2018/05/02/iowa-lawmakers-just-passed-one-of-the-most-restrictive-abortion-bills-in-the-u-s/?utm_term=.0c345d16252b

Mike Pence is more dangerous than Trump.

Mike Pence as president is much more dangerous than Donald Trump. 
- He is not a total moron. He knows how to play and manipulate Trump and the press to his advantage.
- He is waiting in the wings ready to be the calm, soothing voice after Trump is impeached. He then would likely be reelected. He would be such a relief after the daily stress and drama of Trump that people would vote for him again.
- He has a scary-ass conservative agenda that he likely would get passed if he has the Republican support in congress that Trump has now. He knows how to plan, strategize, and implement. (Unlike Trump, who cannot form coherent sentences.)
- He is waiting in the wings for the chance. Keep your eye on him, not Stormy Daniels.
- We need a Democratic wave this November to control Trump or even worse, an effective Mike Pence.

Vote. 
 Axios AM 04/18/18.

Equal pay: here's how it's done.

Unequal pay for men and women makes me want to rip my hair out.
I've worked my ass off for the last 20 years in science and medicine, and nothing makes me more irate than seeing that I'll be paid less because I have a vagina. I work hard, usually harder than most. I'm not the smartest person in the room, but I will likely outwork 99% of my peers. Not to mention that the bulk of my male peers (and friends) doing my same job have wives that cook, clean, and generally make their lives ridiculously easy. Few to no women get a similar improvement in their home life when they marry a man.

Here is a CEO that gets it and fixed it. Well done sir. I hope other CEOs learn from you. This is how we do it (courtesy of Montell Jordan - feel free to sing that last sentence ;).

Below taken from Axios AM:
'On "60 Minutes" on Sunday, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff tells Lesley Stahl how he bridged pay inequities between men and women:

• “I've had CEOs call me and say, ‘This is not true. This is not real.’ And I'll say to them, ‘This is true. Look at the numbers.’” 
• In 2015, Benioff was skeptical that a pay audit would show a disparity at Salesforce, but it did. He had to spend $3 million on raises for women to erase that gap. 
• After Salesforce acquired other firms, another pay audit revealed the gap had returned. He paid another $3 million in raises to fix it.
• “We're going to have to do this continuously … constantly monitor and keep track."
• “CEOs with one button on one computer can pay every man and every woman equally. We have the data."
• “You can't be a great CEO and say that I'm not committed to gender equality today.” '

https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-am

Screw the consumer

Fact (not Fake news):

Under the Trump administration, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has taken no actions against companies harming Americans.

Courtesy of Axios:
https://apnews.com/c80a20db4a5942e7af9632b0cbf75700/Enforcement-actions-at-watchdog-agency-halt-under-Trump?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_axiosam&stream=top-stories

The economy...stupid

I find the economy, taxes, and the federal reserve hard to understand on my best days. Below is a summary of a nice opinion piece from the Washington Post written by a group of individuals that served on the US governments economic committee.

Main points:
1.) We have rising debt because of tax cuts, unfunded wars, and an aging population. We do not have rising debt because of increased spending on entitlements (despite Republicans constant whining). Entitlement allocations have not significantly increased. However, the number of old people has increased substantially over the last 10-20 years because of the aging boomer population. In addition, companies and government have decimated pension programs = more people need social security benefits. Also, rising health care costs have increased the cost of medicare and medicaid. We are not spending more on poor and sick people. We are barely treading water.

2.) Tax cuts should be reserved for times when the country is in recessions.  These tough economic times are best healed and limited by influxes of cash. Tax cuts should not be undertaken when the economy is doing well because then there is no room for further tax cuts in the next recession. FYI: we just passed tax cuts when we have a superbly strong economy.

3.) Corporate tax reform is not a bad idea when done intelligently. We should have decreased the corporate tax rate and closed loop holes. We only decreased the corporate tax rate. Therefore, we as a country have given up a huge amount of revenue when we most need it for our own citizens.

4.) The current economic policy is irresponsible and going to cause catastrophic problems. The rising debt and decreased revenue for the the next 5-10 years is going to decimate our ability to care for our citizens, fix our roads and bridges, and be competitive on the global stage. Where are the grown ups?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/a-debt-crisis-is-coming-but-dont-blame-entitlements/2018/04/08/968df5c2-38fb-11e8-9c0a-85d477d9a226_story.html?utm_term=.fe8daef1a506

Jeff Bezos...a Republican?

Where does Jeff Bezos lie on on the political spectrum? From the little information available, he appears to support Republicans and policies that make rich people richer. I'm not going to lie, it makes me a little sad. I need to see some decent people out there with power.

Two admirable actions I can point out: 
1.) He supported a law to legalize same sex marriage in Washington.
2.) He appears to make decisions that are very data driven.

Washington Post Article main data points:
1.) He largely funds the Amazon PAC that has given substantially more money to Republican candidates such as Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan (this makes me want to hurl) than to any Democratic or liberal candidates.

2.) He put tons of money into defeating a Washington state initiative to create an income tax on the highest earners in the state (Washington state does not currently tax income). Why should we provide money to pay our teachers, help our poorest neighbors, or fund health care adequately for children? I wish he were just a bit better of a human being. Sadly, I feel this way about pretty much all wildly successful white men. There appears to be very little to recommend them as human beings.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/why-trump-went-after-bezos-two-billionaires-across-a-cultural-divide/2018/04/05/22bb94c2-3763-11e8-acd5-35eac230e514_story.html?utm_term=.2704613f83a2

So tired of narcissistic reactions...

See picture below. Please don't waste the precious time of our military men and women nor military budget on a made up problem. Maybe Mr. Trump could work on solving our actual problems rather than creating false ones? I guess he would have to get help for his personality disorder first. And, stop watching Fox news. Ugh. Countdown continues: 2.75 years to go.

We are all racists

Awesome podcast from 'The Daily', a New York Times 20 minute daily podcast about a landmark study on race and income inequality. Probably the most productive 20 minutes you could have this week.

https://www.nytimes.com/podcasts/the-daily
Episode - Friday, March 23, 2018

Design:
Study by Harvard and Stanford groups following 30,000 children across the country over 30 years comparing economic outcomes for African Americans and Caucasians.

Main point:
99% of black boys will fall into a lower economic class over time even if they start in the exact same position as white boys (2 parent families, same middle or upper class neighborhood, and same schools).

The only difference between these boys is the color of their skin. America is not the land of opportunity unless you are a white male. We are awash in individual and institutional racism that is making it almost impossible for African American boys to succeed.

What can you do? Be aware of your own and others actions and then care enough to change them.
1.) Look African American boys in the eyes and acknowledge their existence when crossing paths.
2.) Don't hold your breath and clutch your purse when you are in an elevator with an African American boy.
3.) Don't lock your car doors when an African American boy walks by.
4.) Don't assume the worst of African American boys simply because they are not white.
5.) Do you smile at white men or women when you walk by them on the street or in the hallway at work? Do you do the same if it is a African American man or boy?

We can be so much better than what we are today.

Where do these terrible ideas come from?

Trump's people:

I often marvel at how Mr. Trump manages to hire and surround himself with people that seem to have never felt empathy for another human being ever.

Example: Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen

'New idea guys! Let's separate illegal immigrant children from their parents but keep them close enough so the parents can hear the children screaming in fear. Then, these immigrants will realize that their war-torn countries are a better place to live compared to the US. Brilliant!' - possible brainstorming session at Kristjen's office. 

I'd watch your back Kristjen, karma's a bitch. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/gratuitous-cruelty-by-homeland-security-separating-a-7-year-old-from-her-mother/2018/03/04/98fae4f0-1bff-11e8-ae5a-16e60e4605f3_story.html?utm_term=.4230cb5d7a7f

Dolly Parton the cat

I hope everyone had a restful weekend. Enjoy my bit of floof :)

Fu**ing the common man

Donal Trump has fucked over the working class since he has been president in many ways, but none are more apparent than from the budget he just released. Here are the highlights:

1.) Cuts Medicare by $554 Billion (might as well just kill the old poor people off now, it would be kinder).

2.) Cuts Medicaid by $250 billion (sick, poor children are lazy --> they obviously don't deserve help in any way).

3.) Decimates the National Dislocated Worker Grants for factory workers who lose their jobs because of factory closures or natural disasters — from $219.5 million to $51 million.

4.) Cut $214 billion from the food stamp program. People don't need food to work or take care of their children, they need the super rich getting tax cuts while they are starving. Maybe it will motivate those lazy folks ;).

5.) Decreased Section 8 federal housing subsidies by more than $1 billion. People should live on the street! Can't wait for the skyrocketing homelessness.

6.) [The budget cuts 29 programs at the Education Department, many of which are designed to help needy children — including after-school activities to keep kids off the street and a grant program for college students with “exceptional financial need.”] Direct quote from Washington Post article below.

Thank you Mr. Trump for making this country a shittier and shittier place for everyone but the super rich. You are much worse than I could have ever anticipated in a human being. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2018/02/13/daily-202-trump-budget-highlights-disconnect-between-populist-rhetoric-and-plutocrat-reality/5a8261a530fb041c3c7d7838/?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_daily202-844am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.01c29585f720

https://www.pinterest.com/bfeyetech/fuck-trump/?lp=true

Davos Meeting: Let's pretend we care

Ah yes, the annual meeting of the rich white men and arrogant government leaders to compare penis size aka levels of money and perceived power.

Of course, Trump will be there as a keynote speaker. A selfish, spoiled, privileged, and obese white man who can never have enough power or money. A human who will stop at nothing to get more of both including destroying the American middle and lower classes, raping the environment, and of course the premature deaths of poor and ill people by taking away their health insurance.

Apparently, rich people are starting to get nervous about the wealth inequality that has been widening over the past 20 years. With the new Trump tax plan, the wealth gap is about to get about 100x worse. Rich folks are starting to worry that the populist movement might result in elected officials that actually care about everyday people. And, gasp! These decent humans may pass laws that help someone other than the top 1%. So, to try to quiet the poor and stupid masses, the rich, oh so intelligent individuals at the Davos meeting will 'talk' about how to solve these vexing issues. But make no mistake, all they will do is talk. Because as we've seen over the past 20 years, no person in power who attends meetings like this one would ever put the fate of millions of people ahead of making a few more million dollars for themselves or to solidify their power.

They should be scared of the populist movement. Because populist does not just mean racist, gun-toting Americans. Populist means fighting for the people at the middle and the bottom of society that are being pushed into poverty and despair by the selfish people at the top. I'm sick of the 1% running the show. All I've seen is how terrible they are at that job. A day of reckoning is coming, and I suggest the people at Davos 'talk' about how their time is coming to an end.

***Of note, I refer to the all the Davos meeting attendees as white men. They are in fact about 20% women and of course, a handful of brown and black individuals. Let's just acknowledge what we all know: the attendee percentages of women and people that are not white are not representative of the world populations. Our present day wealth inequalities are directly because of the actions of rich, white men. Period.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/ahead-of-davos-even-the-1-percent-worry-about-inequality/2018/01/21/551392d0-fd2f-11e7-ad8c-ecbb62019393_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-more-top-stories_davos-1145am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.9ea5cddcd709

Just super entertaining

Hilarious Washington Post opinion piece today comparing Trump's group to the characters from 'Animal Farm'. Enjoy!

An excerpt:
The sheep, who chant the pig-devised slogan “Four legs good, two legs bad,” immediately revise their tune when the pigs start walking on two legs: “Four legs good, two legs better.” Clearly, the sheep are the Fox News of the story.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/president-trump-is-a-pig-in-the-best-sense-of-the-word/2018/01/08/eaacd31a-f4ba-11e7-b34a-b85626af34ef_story.html?hpid=hp_no-name_opinion-card-e%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.fd7b119994e0