Conservative think tanks be damned!

I got the following in an email from a family friend, just thought I would post my response. Link to article: http://www.Heritage.org/Research/Budget/cda05-05.cfm

my response:

Thanks for the information. As you know, I am liberal (watch out!), outspoken, and passionate about these issues as well; albeit from a different perspective generally. I agree that there is waste and mismanagement in government funded medical and cash assistance programs, I see it every day. I also have a HUGE problem with bureaucracy, as it tends to be the biggest waste of time and resources in programs designed to help the most vulnerable people in out country: low-income children, low-income working adults, senior citizens, and the disabled. Nearly everyday, I talk to people who are overworked, underpaid, and generally calloused to the real needs of the clients they serve. I take great care and time to not become a burned out social worker, but it is challenging when you begin to realize that then needs are greater than the resources available. Here are some interesting articles/stats/info that I dug up from various places:

MEDICAID:

People who are not insured in this country have few options: Pay up (and face possible bankruptcy), go to the ER, or not seek treatment. It actually is a bigger waste of money for all of us to not have some sort of “universal” healthcare system; people who cannot pay result in higher healthcare cost, and in turn higher insurance premiums, making it increasingly difficult for the average American to even be able to afford health care. For example, we pay well over $300 a month for my coverage through Lance’s plan, yet I know if I had a catastrophic health situation, we still would owe a lot of money for deductibles, copays, etc. I have no health concerns at this time, but if we have a baby or something happens to one of us, we are in trouble.

Kaiser Family Foundation: Current stats show more than 50 million on Medicaid, which is not quite 90 million. 25 million children (1 in 4 American children), 13 million adults (primarily low-income working parents), 5 million senior citizens, and 8 million people with disabilities.
http://www.kff.org/medicaid/loader.cfm?url=/commonspot/security/getfile.cfm&PageID=30463

Community Catalyst:
http://www.communitycatalyst.org/resource.php?doc_id=309&PHPSESSID=a83c2480caba1ce8b223f4b1388b1c13

The Commonwealth Fund: Article on insured, but under covered, Americans.
http://www.cmwf.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=280812


TANF: I know for a fact this is not a program where people who receive this money are living the “high life”, I know someone who has 2 children and received $579 a month from TANF. This did not cover rent, utilities, toiletries, gas, car insurance, or incidentals for her children, such as school supplies. If anything, this program is demoralizing, and does little more than put a “dirty band aid” on the real problem.

I realize you may not agree with much of what I have brought up, and I admittedly got information from more “liberal” think tanks. However, the Heritage Foundation is a self-described “conservative think tank”, so I figure I need to bring in another point of view. I agree that there is a great deal of problems with the so-called welfare state. I will give you the more broad definition of welfare state at another time, it is not just so-called “entitlement programs” that are considered part of the public welfare system. While the article you sent raised interesting points, it did not propose a solution. Simply cutting government program is not a very good solution. What is a good solution? I don’t know yet. I agree with you that there needs to be more community based (grass roots) organizations, however at this point in time the community based organization I have experience with are faced with ever growing needs, and rapidly shrinking resources. Case in point: Washington state has cut people who are not “categorically needy” from their Medicaid funded mental health programs as of July 1st. In Walla Walla County alone, this has resulted in a number of chronically mentally ill people being dropped from case management services, and access to a psychiatrist who monitors that psychotropic medication. The burden then lies on community based organizations, which are neither funded nor equipped to handle a chronically mentally ill population. Physicians with little psychiatric experience are being asked to prescribe and manage (potentially volatile) complex medication regimens. The result is, so far, increased crisis situations. 2 different reports in the local newpaper: person was tasered by the local police force while she was running away from them after slitting her wrists, and yet another person had to be restrained by citizens after he tried to snatch a child. Another issue: my job. I work for a non-profit that received federal and state dollars to provide case management service for people with HIVand AIDS. We had a 10% cut in funding, and my job was cut back. I stayed, because I love what I do, but in the 2 month I have been working reduces hours, I have added 4 people to my caseload, and I am picking up private counseling clients to make up for the difference. But I stay, to fight for the underdog, and be a pain in the tukous to the powers that be (aka lawmakers). I add these stories for a couple reasons: One, there emotional value, which should not be forgotten-these are real people with real problems and little help is available to them, and two, I am compelled to share the prophetic message of helping the “widow and the orphan”.

Diane

Ethics and morality and other Monday rants

Well, a big pet peeve of mine is people who preach "morality" but are highly unethical. I am getting sick and tired of people who excuse the lack of ethics in people just because they happen to share the same sick idealogy (yeah I am talking about Republicans, I am unabashedly biased I know). Take the Guantanamo Bay prisoner abuse scandal, how can people actually excuse this sort of thing with the arguement: well, they are enemy combatants, and probably did much worse to other people, so we can abuse them. It makes my skin crawl to hear people try to justify unethical (and immoral) actions simply because "they did it too." Aargh! While it is disgusting to me that people are allowed to torture other people, and seemingly get away with with, it is equally disturbing that there are people who are TAUGHT to torture people, as well as given orders to do so, or allowed to do so. I can only presume that these practices have a hugely adverse effect on those who are committing the torturous acts as well. I see it as a stripping on one's humanity, bit by bit, act by act. Yet, we have "lawmakers" who are mad that people are mad about this! What the fuck! That is insane! Crazy making. Where are we headed as a society? Screw all the "morality" talk, the endless rants about the so-called negative effects of gay marriage, single parents, divorce, etc., what about our loss of common decency: kindness, mercy, compassion, love. And why is the prophetic voice, speaking out against injustice and hate, being drowned out by the likes of FOX News and the GOP. Speak out people! Be a pain in the ass to the powers that be!

Doubt....

I watched an interview on PBS about the Broadway play "Doubt" and the actors, playwright and interviewer were talking about how we are in an age of certainty- that is people are certain about what they know, think and believe. The playwright talked about how it use to be considered a sign of wisdom to be uncertain, to doubt, but in the current political/cultural/religious climate, it is very "unfashionable" to be someone who expresses doubt. I find this wonderfully curious, as someone who used to be certain about many things (and rather obnoxious about it, I am sure), who is now questions and doubts pretty much everthing. I was trying to explain to a friend and colleague my perspective on doubt last year. My friend believes we can know anything and everything, if we spend enough time seeking truth/knowledge and understand ourselves. I think that I will always have doubts, and I am more than fine with that, which was beyond his comprehension. I explained that I love living in a state of "not-knowing", that I am much calmer, happier, and less obnoxious to be around. This doesn't just apply to god/religion/etc, but also to my interaction with others. As a human, not to mention a therapist/social worker, it would be presumptious for me to assume I know someone else's reality better than they do. I do think there are things we can know, but being the post-modernist/feminist/universalist that I am, I think we really can only know things for ourselves- i.e. we cannot universalize our experiences, as they are subjective. When it comes to doubt, I see it like this: doubt should lead us to ask "the question", whatever it may be, and one question generally begets another, and another, and another.... what an adventure. So, neurotic as I may be, I love living in my little world of "not knowing" (guess that is why I am a good agnostic), and also kinda like that it drives other people kinda nuts.