Just a friendly reminder though: there is a difference between a fine booty and a fat ass.
In Closing: a few birth control and other women’s issues items; this is why net neutrality is important to you even if you didn’t know it; a couple random NSA and CIA items (you know, they could halt the scandal by shuttering the program); maybe a poor choice; send in the drones?; wow; and I do feel certain your life isn’t 70% better than it was in 1980 (assuming of course that you were alive then).
Because if Mr. Obama gets his way, your parents will eventually have no choice but to move in with you.
CNN/Money describes Chained CPI as “The Geeky Debt Fix That Might Work.” It will do no such thing. The assumption is that “CPI overmeasures inflation” when in fact, inflation has been systematically undermeasured for many years. So the answer — according to people who don’t have to balance their own checkbooks — is to adjust inflation yet again so we don’t have to pay more going forward.
That means lower cost of living raises for Congressmen, sure. It also means lower raises for mail carriers, IRS auditors, soldiers and sailors (support our troops, right), and everybody on Social Security. So relative to real inflation, all their paychecks will feel smaller and buy less. In general, wages in this nation haven’t kept up with inflation for most of the last 50 years, so that’s going to hurt even more.
And it’s not going to cut deficits. Even if it works as planned, it will only reduce the rate at which the deficit gets bigger. That’s like going on a weight loss plan and bragging that you’re only gaining 2 pounds a month instead of 5.
Never mind that Social Security does not contribute to the national deficit in any way. Never mind that if the eggheads in Washington were really worried about the idea that at some hazy date in the future, Social Security will pay out more than it pays in, they would suggest raising the maximum contribution.
So go ahead and write or call your Representative and Senators. Send email to the White House too. Ask them point blank:
If Chained CPI is enacted, can my mom come live with you? Because I don’t think I can afford it.
Maybe if they get enough calls, they will notice that this is a bad idea.
In Closing: If this were a math test, they’d fail; Judge cuts political gordian knot; Too Big To Fail is Too Big To Exist; his little outburst earned him a $75k fine and a $100k bonus (explain again how sports makes money for colleges??); Kim, even Castro thinks you’re going too far; and huffing bears.
Follow Up: The Physician Assistants and Nurse Practitioners at Walgreens are a poor substitute for a Doctor. Some are so dangerous, they don’t even know what they don’t know.
Imagine that you work for a relatively small company. One fine Friday in Spring you go to pick up your paycheck, and the owner of the company asks you to sign this:
I agree to use none of my paycheck from XYZ LLC to purchase novels in the Twilight or 50 Shades series. If I am found to own such books, I agree to show that they were not purchased with salary funds (i.e., gift) or face immediate termination.
You might say “What’s this?”
The owner might reply “Those books are sinful, and I won’t allow my money to be spent on them.”
“But it isn’t your money anymore. It’s my money,” you say.
“And you wouldn’t have it if I didn’t give it to you. Now, are you going to sign this, or are you fired?”
I think most of us would be outraged if this happened — even if we never had any desire to read those books. If it were an option, some of us might find other jobs (ha, yeah right, what other jobs?). A few of us might call a local investigative reporter to stick a microphone in that owner’s face. Somebody might think to call the ACLU.
It’s not an accident that I chose two controversial series with a largely female fan base. That’s because the thing some employers are actually trying to censor is access to birth control pills.
The employers trying to do this are using the exact same argument: “It’s sinful and I won’t allow my money to be spent on it.” It sounds a lot siller when we talk about books rather than medication that can prevent poverty and can relieve women of PCOS and endometriosis symptoms — making them more productive workers.
Obamacare requires health insurance plans to cover birth control pills, regardless of what your boss thinks of them. If you think that’s a good thing, click here and sign the petition.
If you ever find yourself asking “Should I Drink Another Drink,” the answer is almost certainly NO! At least this song is conscious of that fact.
In Closing: sigh our “liberal” administration that is “lax on terror” sure loves them some warrantless surveillance (and how many arrests have there been as a result? Yeah that’s what I thought); maybe if you paid enough that somebody could take the job?; Missouri shows me the common sense; the fiscal cliff and you; Penny Marshall; “Sure, increase the number of chickens you have to inspect in a minute by a factor of 5! What could possibly happen?”; because every kid who scores less than 3 out of 5 is a waste of $80 (yes, I see what the pressure cooker does to kids that actually belong in those classes); where does “work ethic” meet “unrealistic job expectations”? Are workers entitled to a life?; zingers; private equity; on polling bias; Pediatric concern trolls strike again; no wonder they never get ahead.
Today’s BlogHer Book Club review is of You Have No Idea, an autobiography by Vanessa Williams and her mother, Helen Williams (with Irene Zutell). Disclaimer: I received a free advance copy of the book, and will receive a small payment for participating in the campaign. However, the opinions expressed here are my own. The discussion starts right here, so jump on in.
This isn’t much of a spoiler (others have pointed out that there’s not much to spoil), but Vanessa starts with exactly what any reader would want to know: How did the Miss America scandal come to be? Where did those pictures even come from? After she’s got the juicy stuff out there, she talks about her childhood and her life since The Scandal. There are a few heartwarming moments, particularly when talking about her Dad. I also enjoyed the photo montage of her with 7 different United States Presidents.
Helen is a very proper lady who grew up in a very trying household. Her commentary on Vanessa’s life is a pleasant reality check!
I really thought hard about whether to bring this next subject up. Vanessa uses the rhythm method of “birth control.” I put that in quotes because she has 4 children (and one abortion) as a result. Even she admits that she “obviously… never mastered it.” I respect her decision. However, even when I was in high school sex ed the one joke our teacher made was “What do you call people who practice the rhythm method? Parents!” Planning to pull out is not birth control.
In the end, Vanessa and Helen are right: I clearly have no idea.
In closing: how do you prove you didn’t do something that hasn’t happened yet?; good advice for anybody; 21 things to do in Vegas for under $21; and please help out JP.