This Week On The Fallon Forum: Bradshaw’s Back!
Ed is still doing great progressive talk radio. Check here for the Fallon Forum weekly broadcast schedule each and every Monday. You can livestream The Fallon Forum at www.fallonforum.com or WRLD.TV from 12:00-1:00, Monday-Friday. Podcasts available, too.)
Dear Friends,
For years, Bradshaw (yeah, he just goes by one name) helped bring some balance to central Iowa’s airwaves. Bradshaw had his own daily talk show. He also played a key role in helping the Fallon Forum get started.
After being kicked-off the air last year, people wondered what ever would become of Mr. Bradshaw. Maybe he’d move to the big city, try to find a talk-radio niche there. Maybe he’d wash dishes or wait tables at Zombie Burger. And in the fantasy minds of cold-hearted right-wingers, maybe he’d leap to a turbulent, watery death off the Scott Street Bridge.
But no. Our hero waited, watched, collected unemployment, and when the opportunity arose he recreated himself as . . . Bradshaw!
Ok, that’s way too much drama. But seriously. Good news: Starting today, May 14th, Bradshaw’s program is back from 1:00-3:00, Monday-Friday, viewable live at fallonforum.com.
And really, while Bradshaw may be wrong on some of the issues (wrong means “disagrees with me”), the guy’s got a great head for policy, a solid grasp of politics, and a wit that moves faster than a lizard’s tongue. Frankly, I’ve been exceedingly impressed with Bradshaw. He has a whole lot to offer Iowa’s (and America’s) political and news dialogue, and whether or not you like what he has to say, I hope you’ll agree it’s important to include his voice in the conversation.
Meanwhile, on the Fallon Forum, 12:00-1:00 pm also on this website . . . Monday, Steve Falck with the Environment Law Policy Center discusses tax credits for solar energy and geothermal. We also dig into passenger rail, something Governor Branstad needs to step-up to the plate on.
Tuesday, David Osterberg with the Iowa Policy Project tackles the question of how to measure America’s 99% vs 1%. We talk about the Earned Income Tax Credit, tax increment financing, and the insanity of giving Wal-mart and McDonald’s a tax break.
Wednesday, Jeff Weiss and I talk about Afghanistan, the corporate media, and who knows what else.
Thursday, Jonathan Wilson, a Des Moines attorney, is my guest.
Friday, local anarchist Adam Senecaut and I debate anarchy, and also the pros and cons of the recent action involving black-clad marchers sporting masks and an upside-down, torn American flag painted with the words “F- Your System.” Wanna guess whether I’m on the pro or con side of this debate?
So, join the conversation, Monday-Friday, online from 12:00-1:00 pm at fallonforum.com. Call in at 244-0077, or toll free (855) 244-0077. Video and audio podcasts are available, too. Please tune-in to Bradshaw, Monday-Friday from 1:00-3:00, also at fallonforum.com. And pledge your financial support, using either Pay Pal or Dwolla. And if you own a business, run a non-profit, or are organizing an event, respond to this message and let’s talk about collaborating on promotion.
Thanks! – Ed
Here’s yesterday’s show with David Osterberg if you missed it.
Tags: Bradshaw, Ed Fallon, fallon forum, iowa progressive radio, iowa talk radio | 
1 Comment »
Romney Visits Iowa Today: Meet Mr. 1%
This video shows just a few of the glaring examples of how out-of-touch Mitt Romney is with working people. Watch the Meet Mr. 1% video here:
WHAT: Press conference on Mitt Romney’s business philosophy
WHO: Ken Sagar, Iowa AFL-CIO President; Midge Slater, Iowa Alliance for Retired Americans; Morgan Miller, recent University of Iowa graduate , Joe Nehring, AFSCME member and Gabe de la Cerda, Des Moines Steel Worker.
WHERE: Lawn of the Des Moines Public Library Lawn; Grand Ave between 10th and 12th Street; Des Moines, IA
Tags: 2012 campaign, Iowa AFL-CIO, Iowa Alliance for Retired Americans, Mitt Romney, Mr. 1%, Romney in Iowa | No Comments »
The Courtney Report
2012 successes for jobs, education, economy
The 2012 session resulted in some significant successes for Iowans.
We’ve once again balanced the state budget without raising taxes. And we’ve approved measures that will move this state forward, create jobs, grow our economy, increase student achievement and expand educational opportunity.
The Legislature did its best work when we refused to be distracted by divisive issues and instead worked together on the top priorities of Iowans. Highlights include:
** Encouraging economic growth and job creation through targeted business incentives, university-supported business development, and funding for local Workforce Development field offices that help out-of-work Iowans find jobs and local businesses find employees.
** Expanding training to ease Iowa’s skilled worker shortage by developing and enhancing programs at our community colleges, which have a tradition of working closely with local business to meet workforce needs.
** Launching education reform that reinforces the importance of early grade literacy, increases parental involvement, establishes annual teacher performance reviews, expands student assessments, and continues funding for smaller class sizes for kids learning to read.
** Making tuition more affordable at community colleges, state universities and private colleges, as well as expanding tuition grants for returning National Guard soldiers.
** Intensifying STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) efforts in K12 schools, along with expanding career-oriented engineering education.
** Jumpstarting Iowa’s solar and geothermal energy industry through targeted tax credits.
** Reforming Iowa’s mental health system to ensure all Iowans receive high-quality services regardless of where they live.
I also voted to increase support for local schools and to significantly cut commercial property taxes. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough support to make these investments that so many Iowans wanted.
Thank you to all who took the time to contact me during the session. Your ideas, suggestions and priorities are reflected in many of the bills that made it to the Governor’s desk.
Education budget boosts key job creation efforts
In the last days of the 2012 session, the Legislature approved a bipartisan compromise on the state’s Education Budget that includes key job creation measures.
Most importantly, we voted to boost investment in our outstanding community colleges so that they can help Iowans fill skilled job shortages. When Iowa employers can’t find the skilled workers they need, they’re left with three choices: lose business to competitors, hire from out-of-state, or move their business out of Iowa.
Under Senate File 2321, investment in workforce training will increase to $8 million next year, a hike of 60 percent. That includes $2 million for the new GAP Tuition Fund, which helps Iowans earn certificates in welding, information technology and other in-demand jobs. And $6 million will go to the Accelerated Career Education (ACE) program.
In addition, general community college funding will increase by $13 million, and the institutions will receive an additional $5 million for maintenance.
The Education Budget also boosts funding for Iowa’s public universities by $23 million, an amount the Board of Regents has said will help prevent future tuition increases. Tuition grants for private colleges increase by 4.6 percent, and funds for the National Guard tuition program go up by 7 percent.
By keeping tuition costs down, we increase educational opportunity and make it possible for Iowa’s families to afford a great future for their kids. Ultimately, investing in education and job training helps Iowans become more productive, competitive workers, grows our economy and boosts job creation.
SF 2321 now goes to Governor Branstad for his signature.
Tackling designer drugs
The abuse of harmful “designer drugs” is on the rise in Iowa.
You may have heard of some of these substances, which are concocted in chemistry labs and sold under such names as K2 and spice (types of synthetic marijuana) and bath salts (synthetic stimulants). These drugs have caused an alarming rise in emergency room visits among those who use them.
That’s why legislators have worked with law enforcement to ban these drugs through Senate File 2343, part of a larger effort to reduce dangerous drug use in Iowa.
Bath salts are stimulants that are ingested or snorted to get high. Poison control centers report that bath salts can lead to extreme paranoia, suicidal thoughts, agitation, combative and violent behavior, increased heart rate and blood pressure, and serious injury or death.
The effects of synthetic marijuana, such as K2, spice and Black Blaze, can vary significantly from person to person. Ill effects can include paranoia, agitation, vomiting, seizures, lack of pain response and uncontrollable body movements.
SF 2343 passed the House and Senate and has gone to the Governor for his signature.
Participate in parade to honor vets, service members
A parade called “A Salute to our Veterans and Service Members” will be held on June 30 in downtown Des Moines. The parade is being coordinated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Iowa National Guard and the Governor’s office to recognize the achievements and dedication of Iowa’s service men and women. For more information or to participate in the parade, call the Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs at 1-800-838-4692.
2012 Iowa Transportation Map available
Showing roadways, rivers, rail lines and more from Larchwood in the northwest to Keokuk in the southeast, the new 2012 Iowa Transportation Map is now out—and it’s free!
Maps are available throughout the state at driver’s license stations, Department of Transportation offices and Iowa’s rest areas and welcome centers. You can also get a complete Iowa travel packet that includes the new map and 2012 Iowa Travel Guide by calling 1-800-345-IOWA or visit www.traveliowa.com.
Contact Tom
CAPITOL:
Iowa Statehouse
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-3371
HOME:
2609 Clearview Drive
Burlington, IA 52601
319-759-5334
tom.courtney@legis.iowa.gov
www.senate.iowa.gov/courtney
Tags: Courtney report, Tom Courtney | No Comments »
The Invisible Hand Of The Market
Due to the disaster at Fukishima last year, the invisible hand of the market now has 6 fingers and a couple of thumbs.
Branstad falling short on jobs
With about 40% of his first administration gone, he has fulfilled about 5% of his promises on jobs. Well, at least he is beating Scott Walker’s Wisconsin. We can now look forward to months of Branstad crying about the Democratic senate, but not a word about his reckless cutting of state jobs.
Congratulations Thurness, Baker and Streit
One more congratulations to the three justices who received the highly prestigious Prfile in Courage Award from Caroline Kennedy last Monday. With President Obama’s backing of gay marriage Wednesday it was a brighter week than most for gay Iowans.
Frank Rich:
And so, Obama has finally finished evolving on same-sex marriage. And about time! I, for one, never understood the point of saying you were “evolving” when many of the voters you were pandering to don’t even believe in evolution.
Shutting down the Government?
I keep hearing rumors that the Republicans are talking of shutting down the government again. My guess is that if they do it would be yet one more major bad decision in a 2 year period of continuing bad decisions. Boehner may not be the worst Speaker ever, but I can’t even think of anyone else in the running for that title.
Romney’s bullying and teen suicides.
Not too difficult to connect the dots from Romney the bully who assaulted another young man to Romney the governor who abolished the state commission tasked with helping LGBT youth at risk of suicide to Romney the candidate who heads back in time to deny gays and lesbians equal rights under the law. We are now beginning to understand the Romney character more and it is sadly G. W. Bush on steroids.
Also makes you understand why he has no problem in crushing unions, firing people, destroying businesses and why he has such disdain for those not like him, especially the poor and women.
One more on Romney
I know little of the Mormon Church. My dealings with Mormons have led me to believe that those I have met are honest, good people. Therefore it amazes me that the most visible Mormon ever lies constantly and now is exposed as bully. Yet no one from his church has spoken up and asked that he quit tarnishing the reputation of the LDS Church. I know I will be a little more cautious when dealing with those who let me know they are Mormon.
Hottest 12 rolling months on record.
May 2011 to April 2012 has officially become the hottest 12 rolling month period ever in recorded temperature history ever. The current level of CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere is 396.18 ppm, well over the 350 ppm that is the upper limit for safety. At what point will our government start reacting to this huge crisis?
12th person granted immunity in Scott Walker investigation
MILWAUKEE (May 9th) — A secret Milwaukee County investigation that has already led to criminal charges against five people close to Gov. Scott Walker took a step forward Wednesday when a judge granted immunity to a 12th witness.
David Halbrooks, a former Milwaukee municipal judge and private attorney, requested and received immunity in the so-called John Doe investigation, according to online court records.
Unlikely that charges will be brought against Walker before the June 5th recall election, but I would hope that voters consider the possibility of Walker governing from jail.
If you are Christian, should you act Christian?
Keaton Fuller, graduating senior at Clinton’s Prince of Peace High School received a $40,000 Matthew Sheperd scholarship for college. The diocese of Davenport stopped Mr. Fuller from receiving his scholarship in the public graduation ceremony.
The way the Catholic Church has acted recently one almost wonders if their next act will be to revive the Crusades?
Tags: Branstad, climate change, investigation, walker | No Comments »
Sunday Funday – Break Up Standard Oil Edition
I have been curious since reading of Standard’s break up to find out what did happen. Surely the company did not just go away just as the Rockefellers did not go broke. Well in the early ’80s I heard something about a merger that was putting pieces of Standard Oil back together and it hit me – maybe what happened was only on paper?
So what do you know about Standard and its breakup?
1) What year did Standard Oil first come into existence?
a) 1850
b) 1870
c) 1885
d) 1890
2) How much of the United States business in oil did Standard control when it was sued by the federal government?
a) 55%
b) 65%
c) 80%
d) 90%
3) Which law was enacted to attack monopolies like Standard?
a) The Volstead Act
b) The Robinson-Patman Act
c) The Sherman Antitrust Act
d) The Clayton Antitrust Act
4) Who was president when Standard Oil was sued and ordered broken into separate companies?
a) McKinley
b) T. Roosevelt
c) Taft
d) Wilson
5) How many companies was Standard ordered to be broken into?
a) 34
b) 107
c) 9
d) 21
6) The breakup was based on what clause in the law?
a) vertical monopoly
b) restraint of trade
c) horizontal monopoly
d) too big to fail
7) Which of these current companies is the largest legacy of Standard Oil?
a) ExxonMobil
b) Shell
c) Chevron
d) BP
8) A criticism of the break up being ordered by the government was
a) Standard was punished for its success
b) Standard was a superior competitor
c) Standard created low prices for the consumer
d) All of the above were criticisms
9) Which of these is not in some part a legacy of Standard Oil?
a) Shell
b) ChevronTexaco
c) BP
d) Conoco-Phillips
10) This company considered to be a cosmetics company was founded as part of the original Standard Oil?
a) Revlon
b) Estee Lauder
c) Palmolive
d) Cheseboro-Ponds
Answers? Don’t you want to wash some oil off first?
1) b) 1870
2) d) Numbers aren’t exact, but close to 90% in years prior to the actual lawsuit
3) c) The Sherman Antitrust Act (this Sherman was brother to Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman)
4) c) Taft – work started under Roosevelt, but the actual suit and breakup was under Taft
5) a) 34
6) b) “restraint of trade”
7) a) ExxonMobil
8) d) all of the above. Have you heard anything like this recently?
9) a) Shell
10) d) Cheseboro-Ponds. Its signature product, Vaseline, was a byproduct of Standard’s processing
I tried to find evidence of interlocking directorates among the baby Standards but could not find any. Such is supposedly illegal but thought to exist.
My Weakness Is My Strength
It just occurred to me that the Republican Party does such a great job at twisting the truth that they have carried themselves for years by turning what used to be horrible failures into their embodiments of strength. While doing that they have also been able to turn the accomplishments of their opponents into their opponents weaknesses.
Probably the greatest single failure in American history is 9/11. This is as I recall the only time that we have ever been attacked (and successfully so) in the contiguous 48 states. This should have been a miserable failure for the administration in power, especially when it was later revealed that they had sufficient advance warning to have been much better prepared. In case you choose to forget, let me remind you of the August 6th memo that Bush dismissed with a curt “You’ve covered your ass.”
Perhaps the worst failure in statesmanship ever is the invasion of Iraq for no real reason. The Bush Administration ginned up stories of Weapons of Mass Destruction and delivery systems that could penetrate deep into the heart of America. They knew these were lies, but used them to take America into a war of choice that has seen over 4,000 Americans die.
Yet the Republican Party and its allies in the media, especially Fox, were able to take these failures and turn them into a triumphs where the Republican Party is feted as the Party that is serious about defense. Seriously? For eight years and more following the disaster of 9/11 Republicans bragged about how they stood up to the terrorists, never mentioning that their own failure was responsible in major part for the disaster happening.
With this twisting of events and the media’s compliance or better yet aid in pushing the Republican narrative we should not be at all surprised that the newest attack on Barrack Obama is another amazing example of the twisting of the truth. What should be one of the brighter moments of our history since the 9/11 attacks, President Obama sponsored relentless pursuit of Osama Bin Laden right up to giving the order to pull off a raid that saw Bin Laden executed.
Now the Republican Party through a super-PAC headed by Karl Rove (Crossroads GPS) are retelling what happened only a year ago and trying to make Obama look like a chump. Even the ever truthless Mitt Romney is joining in, claiming that he could have done what Obama did. We can only hope that the American public learned its lesson on trusting media reframing of events. The public believed the media on John Kerry, on the failure of 9/11, on the invasion of Iraq. Will the public finally understand that they are being used like a bunch of first graders?
It is time for the American public to rise up and demand that the Republican Party quit sponsoring and condoning such distortions of the truth. It is also time that news sources quit acting merely as stenographers and go back to what they used to do. Find the truth behind the spin and report that. There was a time not long ago – pre-Fox News – when we had a few news sources we could depend on to find and report the truth. It is time for these news sources to return to their roots. I hold little hope for corporate news sources to do this, but there is still time for NPR to move back to its glory days.
And for those of you who may have forgotten, last year as he was making jokes at the Correspondents dinner, President Obama knew that he had set in motion a raid that would place his administration in jeopardy should it fail. He also knew that the consequences could be catastrophic in the international scene if the raid were not carried out to precision.
The raid was quite successful. The President gave credit to the SEALS who carried the mission out though he could not reveal any by name. And the world was rid of the greatest terrorist of the times who had been left alone by the previous administration in yet one more of its great failures.
It’s The Republicans, Stupid
It appears that some in the media have realized that it is now time to stop pretending that both sides are equally dysfunctional.
On Friday, in a commentary in the Washington Post, Thomas E. Mann and Norman J. Ornstein finally accurately reported that the reason Washington has become so dysfunctional that government is not working for the American people is because Republicans are the problem.
The gridlock in Washington is entirely the fault of Republicans who were all too anxious to take any steps to deny President Obama a second term and oppose every initiative unanimously, and at the beginning of the 112th Congress sought to repeal any achievement to delegitimize the President and his policies. America’s first credit downgrade in its history arrived because Republicans were unwilling to take a balanced approach to debt reduction by raising revenue in conjunction with spending cuts, and Republican budget proposals reflect that unbalanced approach will be the order of the day if Republicans win the White House and both houses of Congress. The ideological gap has been blamed on extremists in the teabag caucus, but the GOP was already lurching to the extremist right before the 2010 elections by refusing to govern; even from a minority position.
It is evident that Republicans are not inclined to govern this country, and instead are willing to hand control over to wealthy industrialists who have no other intent but to subvert the Constitution and its procedures that dictate how the country is governed. Americans who do not follow politics may believe that both sides are guilty of creating gridlock and a dysfunctional government, and it is due to the media’s lack of reporting and the constant barrage of right-wing media support for extremists. The Post article’s authors cannot be accused of being liberal pundits because both are political scholars who have observed and studied Washington politics for 40 years and they represent both sides of the political divide.
(click here to read the entire article)
Tags: evil GOP, GOP extremism, GOP obstructionism, Republicans, Republicans are the problem | No Comments »
Why You Should Vote To Re-Elect Congressman Dave Loebsack
Rod Sullivan, Johnson County Supervisor
Loebsack for Congress!
I have discussed some other Democratic Party primary races recently – now it is time for the top of the ticket. I am a big backer of incumbent Democratic Congressman Dave Loebsack.
Full disclosure – I have known Dave since the early ‘90s, and known him pretty well since the mid-‘90s. That history actually helps to explain why I support Dave so strongly.
I did not meet Dave at some high dollar fundraiser. I did not meet him at an art gallery or winery. We met stuffing envelopes. In a public library.
You see, Dave Loebsack is a worker. He will get his hands dirty. He knows how average everyday folks live, and he knows what matters to them. Here is a short story to illustrate this point:
During the 2008 floods, I was sandbagging at Thatcher Mobile Home Park in southern Iowa City. I had a couple friends who lived there, and faced with disaster everywhere, I wanted to help the people with the greatest needs.
So, I am shoveling away, chatting with some new friends, when who should walk up but Dave Loebsack. There was no press there, and no campaign staff snapping photos. Dave just grabbed a shovel and went to work. He stayed for at least 90 minutes, maybe a couple hours. Never once did he say that he was in the US House of Representatives – he was just Dave, there to help.
When Dave left, one of the women smiled and said to the rest of us – “You know who that was, don’t you? That was our Congressman!” The rest of the folks were amazed! There were no cameras! He had worked HARD! They had a fairly negative stereotype of a Congressman – until they met Dave.
Dave takes this same type of approach to his work in Congress. He knows what the hard-working folks of Thatcher Mobile Home Park need, and he fights for them.
Dave knows that these folks need good schools. They need healthcare coverage. They need Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security. They need jobs that pay a living wage. They need clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. If they have these things in place, their hard work can pay off.
How can I be so sure Dave understands this? Because he has lived it. Dave grew up in poverty, son of a single mother who struggled with mental illness. Life was not easy. But with the help of government programs, Dave grew up healthy and well fed. With the help of government programs, he went to college, even earning a Ph.D. With the help of government programs, Dave went from child poverty to the US Congress. He lived the American Dream! And he has not forgotten those government programs that helped make it possible.
I have been very proud of my friend’s work in Congress. Yes, sometimes lawmaking is akin to sausage making. But Dave has always shot straight, and told us what he thought. More importantly, I have seen him listen to constituents and change his own vote once they convinced him they were correct.
So, yes – I like Dave. He is a good person and a good Congressman, and he has my support in both June and November.
I have heard folks say that this election does not matter; challenger Joe Seng is not credible. They will wait until November to support Dave. I disagree!
NEVER take ANY election for granted! You like Dave? Vote! You want a change? Vote! Whatever the case, VOTE!
I’ll be voting for Dave Loebsack. I hope you will, too.
Reposted with permission from Sullivan’s Salvos, the weekly newsletter of Johnson County Supervisor Rod Sullivan.
Tags: dave loebsack, Loebsack for Congress, Rod Sullivan | No Comments »
Judging the Affordable Care Act
Affordable Care Act Signature
by Ralph Scharnau
The Supreme Court has agreed to rule on the constitutionality of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA). This act is the most sweeping piece of domestic legislation since the passage of Medicare in 1965.
ACA requires everyone, healthy as well as sick, to buy insurance or face a penalty, while aiding those for whom this is a financial hardship. This system is already working in Massachusetts where it passed with the support of Governor Mitt Romney in 2006.
Under ACA, those who have good health benefits from employers can keep them. The act is aimed at Americans who fall through the cracks, either going without coverage or relying on the miserably malfunctioning individual “non-group” insurance. The issue becomes more urgent because fewer and fewer jobs come with health benefits, and, at the same time, employment-based coverage continues to decline.
Although not without flaws, the Affordable Care Act improves our health care system. It extends coverage to approximately 30 million uninsured people, and it expands Medicare to about 15 million low-income people. It prohibits the insurance industry from: refusing coverage to those with pre-existing conditions, ending coverage for the sick, discriminating against women, and putting annual and lifetime payment limits on overall coverage. Seniors get help with high drug costs, small businesses get tax credits for providing coverage, and children can stay on their parents’ plans until age 26. The legislation also launches a variety of public initiatives to prevent disease and encourage healthy behavior which will cut health care costs.
A vitriolic debate has erupted over this landmark health care law and the limits of federal power. At the center of the legal controversy over the act is the so-called “individual mandate.” Upholding the mandate would simply mean that the “healthcare market” which virtually everyone participates in would not allow free-riders and that Congress has the power to regulate that market. The individual mandate imposes an affirmative duty to buy health insurance. Other federal laws impose similar duties, such as paying taxes, registering for the draft, and providing safe workplaces. The mandate is irrelevant to the 80 percent of non-elderly Americans who already have insurance, either through their employers, government programs, or purchased on their own.
The individual insurance requirement that the court is reviewing isn’t the first federal mandate involving health care. There’s a Medicare payroll tax on workers and employers and a requirement that hospitals provide free emergency services to indigents.
The court decision, expected in June, will affect the way virtually every American receives and pays for health care. The justices’ decision will become a significant part of this year’s presidential and congressional election campaigns.
It is unclear what the court will do in the end, whether it will let the law stand, strike the whole thing down, or invalidate only the mandate. Lee Epstein, a political scientist and lecturer at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law, stated, “The political science side of me,” sees a 5-4 decision to strike the law while “the law professor side of me” sees it 6 to 3 to uphold. If the court invalidates the mandate, the law risks losing funding from a larger pool of premium payers necessary to provide coverage to newly insured individuals.
It should be remembered that our federal government has the judicially affirmed power under our Constitution to use public revenues to provide a needed public service such as education, national security, retirement insurance, or health care. We really need health care reform that simply extends Medicare and Medicaid coverage to all who want and need it while allowing others to opt out for private insurance coverage.
Ralph Scharnau teaches U. S. history at Northeast Iowa Community College, Peosta. He holds a Ph.D. from Northern Illinois University. His publications include articles on labor history in Iowa and Dubuque. Scharnau, a peace and justice activist, writes monthly op-ed columns for the Dubuque Telegraph Herald.
Tags: affordable care act, healthcare | No Comments »
- Schultz Vindicated: Voter Fraud Proven!
- Schultz Raises Dead Voter Scare Again
- Repubs Stage Crime at NH Polls
- Wondering About GOP Caucus Count
- Judge Fires Voting Machine Investigators
- Globe-Gazette Decries “Cheap Shot” from SoS Schultz
- Voting By Email Is Foolish
- Congratulations, Iowa
- Auditors Study Photo ID
- Iowa’s Best Criminals
Comment On Marriage Equality
One of the greatest struggles in the United States is the struggle between what we as a nation profess to believe and what we actually practice. The stated equality for all citizens is sadly still an unachieved goal in many areas nearly 240 years after the Declaration of Independence and almost 225 years after the adoption of our Constitution.
One can safely say that African Americans are still not treated the same before the law as caucasians. Latinos have recently had laws passed in several states that are drafted specifically to treat them differently. Women as a group continue to be treated by many state legislatures as second class citizens. The poor have their rights trampled on daily. And the rich not only are treated differently, but they do not hide their open attempts to buy legislative votes for their interests.
I applaud and thank President Obama for his statement supporting marriage equality. But as noted above, true equality will be a long time coming yet.
And a question for those who are fighting so hard to keep so many groups in less than first class status. Do you really want to live in the society that you are working so hard to create? Remember, those who take away the rights of others can easily take yours away also.