Is anybody else out there Sick Of It?

Then shout it out!

Et, Pourquoi, Encore?

I refer you back to an early post, titled "Gifts from Lebanese Children." This art exhibition could be seen as an antidote to that madness. Yet, still: what madness.

Immanuel Kant: attack ad

No, there's nothing new under the sun.



Which reminds me of The Philospher Song. And Mr. Cropper prepared this response to the Kant attack ad, thereby demonstrating once again that actions speak louder than philosophers.

Health Care Bargains for Everyone on Your List

It's time for Holiday Madness to ramp up to speed. When I lived in the Northeast, I NEVER shopped at the mall between Labor Day and New Year's Day. It took longer to find a parking space than it did to run my errands, which never seemed like a good use of my time. Of course, I'm not a shopper; I prefer to walk my miles amid nature, with the human varieties less in evidence.

This year, I'm not shopping. Again. The All-Knowing Invisible Hand of the Unfettered (HA!) Free Market has, for the 5th consecutive year, sent a smaller pile of coins my way, while assuring that a larger number of them will go to the gas company, the electric company, and the grocery store. Bless Mark, who got me my low-rate, fixed-interest mortgage!

A new wrinkle this year is that I have no medical insurance. (It's been years since I had HEALTH insurance; that went out with the Carter administration.) Consequently, articles like the one cited below have acquired a personal urgency for me. Will poses the question we should all be discussing: is good health a consumer good or is it a basic requirement for human functioning? The full post is at The Rockridge Institute. Thank you, Will, for having the clear thinking and expression I lack.

Special! Buy two gewgaws and get a knick-knack free! This year, we'll once again shop for all the electronics, clothing, toys, and bric-a-brac that supposedly make our lives worth living. Holiday shopping has emerged as a popular stand-in for love, togetherness, and general human affection. But while we shop, why don't we reconsider what it means to have health care? In many ways, health insurance has emerged as a stand-in for health care and well-being, conveniently missing that charging exorbitant prices and denying treatment don't actually keep us very healthy. (See the Rockridge Institute's paper The Logic of the Health Care Debate for a more detailed discussion of our different health care models.)

Created by will_at_rockridge (Rockridge Institute staff member) on Wednesday, November 21, 2007 12:42 PM.

Here's a related question: is education a consumer good or a vital social requirement? Can we keep our Republic if large numbers of citizens are educated without exposure to:

• People of different races, religions, socio-economic, and ethnic backgrounds
• People of different religions,
• People of different economic backgrounds,
• People of different ethnic backgrounds,
• People who are not Americans,
• [Add your own here...]

Which brings us back to the very basic question of government's social role in forming a citizenry. Having witnessed the commondification of education and "health," I am convinced government must insist on a high standard of both, for all our people, if we are not to become a fragmented, contentious group of people who happen to inhabit a particular piece of real estate. Oh, but creating distinctions among people (and the means to "keep up") is what the Market does, isn't it?

Wings of Justice for Dennis Kucinich

[T]here is no question -- whether one supports him or not -- that Dennis Kucinich deserves this week's BuzzFlash Wings of Justice Award for shaming both parties into confronting an effort to impeach Dick Cheney on the House floor.

Read the rest on BuzzFlash.

Comic Relief

The news is depressing, and politics worse, so here's something completely different. I hope you will enjoy these ads as much as I did -- which was enough for me to consider trying the product.

1. Feel the heat

2. Bubble Bath

3. Turkey Drop

4. Turkey Wrestling


Now, any questions about why I serve cheese sandwiches on Thanksgiving?

Well, That Explains It!

With thanks to Kirk Anderson.