Tag Archives: Brains and Eggs

Politics

Congress PASSES VA Healthcare Bill

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In the wake of everyone’s shock and awe at Eric Cantor’s stunning defeat this week, did anyone notice something on Capitol Hill that hasn’t happened in a long time??  Yes, that’s right… both houses of the United States actually did some WORK this week.  Work that was not meeting with lobbyists or calling rich folks to beg for campaign cash.  The House of Representatives passed a bill to improve VA healthcare UNANIMOUSLY!!  And on Wednesday, the Senate passed a similar bill by and overwhelming margin.  Your eyes are not deceiving you.  Here’s the story from Politico…

The Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed legislation aimed at increasing veterans’ access to health care and holding accountable bad actors in the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The legislation passed 93-3 and represents rare cooperation between the House and Senate, raising hopes that Congress is moving swiftly toward a VA reform compromise to send to the president’s desk. The Senate legislation largely mirrors similar proposals from the House, and lawmakers and aides do not expect a knock-down political fight as the two chambers iron out their discrepancies over the coming days…

…With the House unanimously passing veterans’ health care and accountability legislation that senators say is extraordinarily close to the version crafted by Sanders and John McCain (R-Ariz.), lawmakers across the Capitol are increasingly confident that the president will have a new veterans’ health law on his desk by the end of the month.

So the United States Congress decides to have a rare moment of clarity and help our nation’s heroes get the healthcare and services they deserve.  This is great news, right?  Well just today over on Fox News, the critics have come out swinging saying the bill could have a huge price tag when all is said and done.

Fiscal hawks are warning that new legislation passed in both chambers of Congress this week in response to the Veteran Affairs scandal could cost taxpayers more than $500 billion over the next decade. 

A Senate source told FoxNews.com on Friday that lawmakers “passed a bill they didn’t read which led to Congress issuing a blank check with real consequences for the country down the road.” 

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget rang the alarm bells over the bill on Thursday, releasing a statement saying the Senate version of the bill “violates every principle of good budgeting, and could add substantially to the national debt.”

This Fox News commentator doesn’t think our nation’s Vets are worth the investment.  The bill may have a big price tag, and we of course would hope our legislators and their staff could always read things that they vote on, but if it helps to fix systemic problems plaguing the VA, then the American people should rally behind it.  Our heroes are worth every penny and then some.

 

 

 

 

Equality, Houston Politics

Houston Equal Rights Ordinance PASSES

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It’s a moment that was years in the making, and for some Houstonians, a moment that means so much more than words on any page could convey.  The silent, and often private struggles of discrimination have long been endorsed by the city of Houston… an endorsement via inaction and refusal to address those who are oppressed.  But on May 28th 2014, that endorsement of discrimination ended in the Bayou City, as Houston City Council has passed a comprehensive, non-discrimination ordinance.  Known now as the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, it passed Council by a vote of 11 to 6.

Both sides argued passionately for and against H.E.R.O., though many questioned how much of the opposition’s argument was based in factual information.  Speaker after speaker gave eerily similar scenarios that all revolved around some imaginary figure in a bathroom waiting for the opportunity to molest a child.  But in the end, this vast cloud of falsehood did not win out, and the city took an important step forward to protect all of its citizens.

From a political standpoint, many see the passage of H.E.R.O. as “a victory for the Mayor” or a victory for her base, being the LGBT community.  I don’t see it that way, but instead this is a victory for everyone in the city of Houston.  A city that seeks to protect all of its citizens is a city that is safer for all.  Ask anyone in the LGBT community… it takes real courage to live as an out individual.  Just like someone who goes around hating openly gay people… there’s a strong possibility that the person initiating the hatred is gay themselves, but haven’t found the strength to deal with their internal feelings.  They lash out against others because of fear of themselves.  Laws like H.E.R.O. get rid of that fear by helping to create an environment where that person can walk their individual journey in a healthier way.  They are less likely to lash out… less likely to cause any harm to others.  By standing up for equal protection, Houston is sending a message that we care about everyone’s safety.

As I wrote in an earlier post, Annise Parker has accomplished much as Mayor of the City of Houston.  In 4 short years, she has shepherded historic growth and prosperity for the city and region… tackling a host of problems her predecessors were too scared to face.  But one has to believe that she was uniquely skilled for this moment in time.  Parker will be long remembered for her bravery and expert strategy to get the ordinance through.  Because of her leadership, we are a better city today than we were yesterday, and 2.2 million Texans have a home where discrimination is no longer acceptable.

Transgriot, Brains and Eggs and Off the Kuff have more.

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Houston Politics

Mega May Day: Global Fast Food Strike

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Though International Workers’ Day technically falls on the 1st of May each year (May Day), the biggest developments appear to be happening two weeks later.  From msnbc.com, here’s what’s occurring around the world today…

On May 15, after months of relative quiet, fast food workers in 150 American cities will again go on strike. Once again, they will demand that some of America’s largest low-wage employers provide a base wage of $15 per hour and allow their workers to unionize. And once again, the striking workers will be joined on the picket lines by local politicians, community activists, and members of the clergy.

This strike, which KFC worker and movement organizer Naquashia LeGrand announced at a Wednesday rally, will likely be the biggest fast food labor action yet. In terms of the number of cities involved, it will certainly dwarf the previous record, a 100-city strike which took place in December. But perhaps more importantly, this will be the first labor action in the movement’s short history to spill across national borders. As workers in the United States walk off the job, fast food employees on six other continents will rally in solidarity.

“I work hard enough, just like everybody else. So I deserve a fair wage to take care of my family, just like everybody else around the nation,” said LeGrand. “We all deserve a living wage to take care of our families. There is no reason why we should be living in poverty. And that’s the reason why we’re going on strike.”

Danish McDonald’s worker Louise Marie Rantzau came to New York to attend the conference, and she spoke at Wednesday’s rally. Danish McDonald’s workers are unionized, she told msnbc, and employees who are over 18 make $21 per hour in American dollars.

“I can’t understand how McDonald’s can pay me a good wage and not do it in the U.S.,” she said. “I have this feeling that McDonald’s makes so much money, and it all goes in their pockets. So if they can afford it in Denmark, then they can afford it in the rest of the world.”

If every country cared about paying living wages the way Denmark does, then international strikes wouldn’t be needed.

To ignore the needs of base-level service workers is to also ignore the realities of a 21st century global economy.  As factory work has transitioned from human hands to robotic sequences, the world has seen a corresponding decline in middle class industrial employment.  Those factory jobs aren’t coming back, at least not in the same way they once did. But this decline in available employment for the many sure isn’t slowing down profits for the privileged few.  A shocking new report from Demos states that those at the helm of our fast food corporations are doing better than ever…

The average compensation of fast food CEOs was $23.8 million in 2013, making these executives some of the best-paid workers anywhere in the economy. At the same time, the fast food workforce is the lowest paid, with wages that fall below those of other employees in the sector and with little access to non-wage benefits. The CEO-to-worker compensation ratio is being pushed to its heights from both the top and the bottom, as executives in fast food have seen incomes grow substantially since 2000 while workers experienced virtually no growth at all.

After the Great Recession ended in 2009, CEOs captured the tide of economic growth with impressive rapidity. Executive pay recovered and outstripped previous levels within a single year. Workers, though, were left out of these gains. Since 2000, the average fast food worker has seen her total compensation climb by just 0.3 percent in real terms, and in 2013 was still making less money than before the recession. As a result of the trends for both components of the CEO-to-worker ratio, fast food stands out for its extreme imbalance in compensation practices.

The disparity between CEOs and base-level workers is unacceptable, if not criminal.  Adding insult to injury are states like Texas, who already don’t lift a finger to help their workers by refusing to raise the minimum wage, or explore any serious options for healthcare expansion to the poor.  Until this downward spiral is halted, and these workers gain access to a living wage, the voices for change will grow louder.

Brains and Eggs has a great post on this as well.

Fast Food Strike

(Photo Credit: Houston Public Media)

 

 

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Texoblogosphere: Week of February 17th

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The Texas Progressive Alliance is always ready for voting to begin as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff concluded his series of primary interviews with conversations featuring State Rep. Mary Gonzalez, and Ag Commissioner candidates Kinky Friedman and Hugh Fitzsimons.

Over two million Texas voters from the 2008 Democratic primary — and eight million who were registered to vote in 2012’s general election — have not shown up to cast a ballot. Texas is NOT a conservative state; it’s a non-voting state. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs has the details on what it will take for Texas to turn blue, and the numbers don’t offer much encouragement.

Horwitz at Texpatriate explains why Attorney General Greg Abbott pulled the ladder up behind him on other disabled Texans after receiving his thirty pieces of silver.

WCNews at Eye on Williamson shows how the Texas GOP, with Perry at the wheel, took the express lane to Crazy Town and the rest of Texas is along for the ride, It’s Going To Be A Huge Mess.

Neil at All People Have Value admired turtles and a fish seemingly doing well in not very clean water in Houston’s Buffalo Bayou. These creatures recall the fact that people not only can thrive in a rough environment, they can also shape surroundings for the better. All People Have Value is part of NeilAquino.com.

And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Texas Clean Air Matters calls on the state to work with the EPA.

The Feminist Justice League shows some love for Sen. Leticia Van de Putte.

The Texas Green Report cheers a study showing Texas among the nation’s leaders in solar-related jobs.

Christopher Hooks wants Dan Patrick and Julian Castro to have that debate about immigration already.

Lone Star Q salutes outgoing Fort Worth City Council member Joel Burns.

Mustafa Tameez analyzes NASA’s Tea Party Primary in CD36.

Battleground Texas had an amazingly successful event at Rice University for Wendy Davis.

And finally, the TPA congratulates Noel Freeman for a long awaited and much deserved second chance.

Houston Politics

Texoblogosphere: week of January 20th

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The Texas Progressive Alliance thinks that if same sex marriage is OK for Utah and Oklahoma it’s OK for our state too as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff interviews Kim Ogg, candidate for Harris County District Attorney, and Steve Brown, candidate for Texas Railroad Commission.

Eye On Williamson on priorities. Keeping immigrants in the shadows, because it’s not good politics for the GOP in an election year, shows exactly what the GOP’s priorities are. John Carter & The GOP’s Misplaced Priorities.

Horwitz at Texpatriate reports on the controversy that has recently erupted in the US Senate Democratic primary between David Alameel and Maxey Scherr.

The civil war in the Harris County Republican Party threatens to disrupt the candidacy of Dan Patrick for lieutenant governor, and PDiddie at Brains and Eggs has a snapshot of the battlefield.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme wants you to know that those Charter Schools are using your money to push the propaganda to your children..

Harold Cook patiently debunks Republican claims about Wendy Davis’ fundraising totals.

After reading a story about how China is paying for new shipping ports for Sri Lanka, Neil at All People Have Value wrote that when somebody else builds your port you lose control of what ships arrive and what goods are received. It is better that we construct our own ports of friendship and imagination. All People Have Value is part of NeilAquino.com.

Texas Leftist welcomes it’s first ever guest contributor… A remarkable man who has truly lived all sides of the marriage debate. In the span of a few short years, this father of three went from being married to his wife to marrying his husband. Fred-Allen Self has an interesting story to tell.

And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Better Texas Blog celebrates the 50th anniversary of LBJ’s War on Poverty and reminds us that there is still much to be done about it.

Scott Braddock reports on a targeted worker misclassification crackdown going on in Texas.

The Texas Green Report wonders if the earthquakes in Azle will lead to a change in thinking, and in regulation, on fracking.

Juanita notes that Texas is now exporting campaign finance law violators to other states.

The Republic of Austin shares an Austin-based ad campaign that is trying to convince people not to move to Austin.

The Heights Life has some good news about one school that’s bucking the trend on library downsizing.

Texas Vox wants you to write a letter about Keystone XL.

Finally, the TPA warmly congratulates Eileen Smith of In The Pink Texas for the beautiful new addition to her family.

Houston Politics

Texoblogosphere: Week of December 30th

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The Texas Progressive Alliance bids farewell to 2013 and wishes everyone a happy and healthy 2014 as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff has stayed on top of the legal action in the Utah same sex marriage litigation and related matters.

Texpatriate picks Annise Parker as its 2013 Person of the Year.

DosCentavos gives us the last Thoughts on Viernes of 2013 which includes his Top 10 posts of 2013.

From the media’s impression, it’s pretty easy to think that all faith communities are against LGBT people and the struggle for equality. But in reality the religious debates are just as diverse as the ones going on elsewhere, with opinions changing just as rapidly as any other segment of society. Texas Leftist takes a look at one Houston church that is affecting this change while enlightening hearts and minds. As they would say, “traditional worship for contemporary people”.

The Texas Education Agency totally ignores South Texas. CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme is outraged, but not surprised at Republican denial of education opportunities for Texas Hispanics.

There was some gay marriage news made at the end of 2013, and it had nothing to do with Duck Die Nasty, according to PDiddie at Brains and Eggs.

Neil at All People Have Value took a walk on the Texas City Dike. Neil says that the TCD is a great place to take a walk and to get some thinking done. All People Have Value is a part of NeilAquino.com.

And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Laura Mayes sets a goal of spending more quality time with the children in her life.

Lone Star Q rounds up the top Texas LGBT stories for 2013.

Texas Redistricting rounds up some recent news stories relating to election law.

Grits for Breakfast reminds us that “Santa was in prison, and Jesus got the death penalty”.

Greg calculates updated Citizen Voting Age Population (CVAP) totals for Harris County.

Andrea Grimes reports on a Texas law that is forcing a hospital and a family to keep a pregnant woman on life support against her stated wishes.

New Media Texas outlines the six steps to getting a job in politics.

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Texoblogosphere: Week of October 28th

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The Texas Progressive Alliance has its Halloween costume ready as it bring you this weeks’ roundup.

Off the Kuff examines the recent R to D party switches in Bexar County.

Horwitz at Texpatriate discusses the recent shakeups in Statewide races.

Two more Democrats announced their intentions to run statewide, for the US Senate and the lieutenant governorship, over the weekend. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs has the details.

Eye On Williamson is still blogging at our temporary home. The corporate toll road experiment is not going well in Texas. TxDOT can’t pave roads in South Texas, but they can erect signs, do marketing, and subsidies/corporate welfare for a corporate toll road, The road to nowhere.

Looking to stay the right course on a new effort after 6 years writing Texas Liberal, Neil at All People Have Value updated his blog throughout the last week. All People Have Value is part of NeilAquino.com.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme says blast from the past Tom DeLay is trying to get in front of the Republican crazy train.

And here are some other Texas blog posts of interest.

Mark Bennett offers a “revenge porn” statute that might pass constitutional muster.

Grits for Breakfast asks if police shootings of mentally ill folks are on the rise.

The Makeshift Academic wrapped up a four-part analysis of the progressive nature of Obamacare taxation.

Nonsequiteuse wants to know why encouraging condom usage isn’t compatible with the principles of demonstrating courtesy and encouraging responsible behavior.

The TSTA blog criticizes merit pay bonuses for teachers.

Texas Vox regrets a missed opportunity for cleaner air in Texas.

Jessica Luther reminds us that Wendy Davis was far from alone during her filibuster.

Juanita suggests a campaign slogan for Ted Nugent.