Wondering Anew

I know, it's Thursday, and I usually do my best wondering on Wednesdays.

But I've got to tell you, catching up on the reactions to President Obama's last SOTU has made me full of wonderment.   Here's just one example.

POTUS said last night that we ought not to target each other, or others because of race or religion.  In that section of his speech, he referenced comments from Pope Francis, who was invited by former Speaker Crying John Boehner to speak to Congress a few months back. The Pope spoke, and Boehner, who cried through the whole thing, and cried even more when Pope Francis went on out Boehner's balcony and acknowledged the massive crowd below.  And then, seemingly immediately, Boehner retired.

And we now face a House led by the young family man Paul Ryan. And where I saw nothing wrong with Obama reminding everyone of the Pope's simple message, Ryan thought very differently.

Here's what Obama said:

We need to reject any politics that targets people because of race or religion. This isn't a matter of political correctness. It's a matter of understanding what makes us strong. The world respects us not just for our arsenal; it respects us for our diversity and our openness and the way we respect every faith.

His Holiness, Pope Francis, told this body from the very spot I stand tonight that, 'to imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place.'  When politicians insult Muslims, whether abroad or our fellow citizens, when a mosque is vandalized, or a kid is called names, that doesn't make us safer. 

That's not telling it like it is. It's just wrong. It diminishes us in the eyes of the world. It makes it harder to achieve our goals. And it betrays who we are as a country.  

And here's what Ryan thought about it, in an interview with USA Today.

I think it sort of degrades the presidency to talk about primary politics in the other party, during primaries. That's not what presidents ought to be talking about in State of the Union addresses. Speaking up for our values and speaking up for our beliefs is one thing. But kind of wading into the primary politics of the other party is just not really what Presidents ought to do.

You know, if  Paul Ryan and Reince Priebus and other 'leaders' of the Republican Party had any cojones, they would have stood up to Donald Trump already - in fact, they would have stood up to him weeks, no months ago, and told him that he's hurting the party and embarrassing America.

They would have told him that they would not support him if he were the party's nominee, and they would have told him that they would not support him if he were elected.  They would have told him to go away, and they would have accepted the consequences of their actions, should there be any.

Instead, Ryan says we can't have a religious test for immigrants, we need to have a security test. Which, by the way, is already in place for folks, causing 15, 18, 24 months or more to pass before we allow most folks in from suspect areas. Unfortunately, trying to define a difference between a religious test and a security test doesn't address what Obama was talking about: the diminishing of America in the eyes of the world, and the betrayal of us as a country.

If the Republicans won't address it themselves, whether from Trump or from any other Republicans in state or federal office, why not the President?

And what's not Presidential about defending our country, I wonder?

Wondering, on Wednesday (v44)

I watched with interest President Obama's State of the Union (SOTU) address last night; I was curious about what he was going to say in his lame duck address, especially since there had been news in the days leading up to last night's speech that he was going to be 'unconventional' or 'nontraditional' this time around. And to an extent, that was true.

Gone were the call outs to Americans sitting in the guest boxes, veterans or teachers or plumbers or the like, folks who lived a story that touched on an issue close to the President's heart (or that of his speechwriters). The people were still there, of course. Even less-than-special guests, like Kim Davis, the government employee who refuses to do her job down in Kentucky. Seems she was 'invited' by a representative from Ohio who, until he was tracked down by someone today, was not even aware he had invited her. I wonder, this Wednesday, if he would have asked her to come along on purpose, instead of donating a ticket to a foundation that ended up in her hands?

Gone, too, from this SOTU, was any pretense of trying to get any major work done this year; Obama opened the speech noting that

Tonight marks the eighth year I've come here to report on the State of the Union. And for this final one, I'm going to try and make it shorter. I know some of you are antsy to get back to Iowa.  I know -- I've been there.

I also understand that, because it's an election season, expectations for what we'll achieve this year are low...I want to go easy on the traditional list of proposals for the year ahead. 

Generally, he kept to his legislative-light approach, and focused more on our country and our American ideals.  He made many references tor our past and how we need to somehow regain what we used to be, if we are to be successful in the future.

America has been through big changes before - wars and depression, the influx of immigrants, workers fighting for a fair deal, and movements to expand civil rights. Each time, there have been those who told us to fear the future, who claimed we could slam the brakes on change, promising to restore past glory if we just got some group or idea that was threatening America under control. And each time, we overcame those fears. We did not in the words of Lincoln, adhere to the "dogmas of the quiet past." Instead we thought anew, and acted anew. We made change work for us... and because we did - because we saw opportunity where others saw only peril - we emerged stronger and better than before.

 A bit later, as a preface to four questions he wanted to get us thinking about, he posed this question:

Will we respond to the changes of our time with fear, turning inward as a nation, and turning against each other as a people? Or will we face the future with confidence in who we are, what we stand for, and the incredible things we can do together?

Here's the gist of his four questions:

1. How do we give everyone a fair shot at opportunity and security?
2. How do we make technology work for us and not against us?
3. How do we keep America safe, without becoming the world's policeman?
4. How can we make our politics reflect what's best in us, and not what's worst?

The last question is by far the one I'm most interested in. The first three can be filtered down into ideological issues - small government vs. big government, trickle down vs. bubble up, and so on, but the last one? That one can cross, even obliterate, party lines.

Regular readers know I often find myself wondering how the heck we got into such a pickle with our political process, with more money than all of the Supreme Beings from all the world's religions have between them corrupting the process, with corporations being equal to living, breathing people with individual rights, with efforts to restrict voting, and sham political districts, and politicians openly supporting those who bald-face disregard our laws, such as the aforementioned Kim Davis, and the Bundys, and people who refuse service to people who are not like them... I could go on and on.

President Obama hit on those topics last night. And then, he challenged us, people from both major parties and all of the other official parties, the almost parties, the special caucuses and even the loosely affiliated. He challenged us one and all.

The future we want - opportunity and security for our families; a rising standard of living and a sustainable, peaceful planet for our kids - all that is within our reach. But it will only happen if we work together It will only happen if we can have rational, constructive debates.

It will only happen if we fix our politics.

I wondered, as he wove his way through this part of his speech, looking out an an audience unburdened by term limits, many of them beneficiaries of the very practices he was describing, if he really thought the people in the room would go home thinking even a tiny bit differently about how they personally are perceived, or how what they do is perceived?

Changes in our political process - in not just who gets elected but how they get elected - that will only happen when the American people demand it. It will depend on you. That's what's meant by a government of, by, and for the people.

What I'm asking for is hard. It's easier to be cynical; to accept that change isn't possible, and politics is hopeless, and to believe our voices and actions don't matter. But if we give up now, we forsake a better future.  

I wondered, would people believe him when he said it basically didn't matter whether you're a Republican or a Democrat, the only thing that matters is that you participate?

And so, my fellow Americans, whatever you may believe, whether you prefer one party or no party, our collective future depends on your willingness to uphold your obligations as a citizen. To vote. To speak out. To stand up for others, especially the weak, especially the vulnerable, knowing that each of us is only here because somebody, somewhere, stood up for us. To stay active in our public life so it reflects the goodness and decency and optimism that I see in the American people every single day. 

Because, ultimately, it doesn't matter what your beliefs are. What matters is that your participate.

Will we answer the call, I wonder?

Tuesday's Number: $28,072

Tuesday is the day my local paper, The Post-Standard, publishes the weekly business section. In addition to special features, tips from stock experts, budgeting advice and the like, we get the judgment and bankruptcy listings.

This is the fourth full year I’ve been tracking these numbers – I captured part of the year in 2012 – and the third year that I’ve captured filings by hospital.  I include anything that is likely a patient debt owed to a hospital, nursing home, physician or physician group, medical supplier, and so on; I do not include filings by insurance companies, many of which are so diversified it would not be a fair assumption that the filing is related to medical care or health insurance.

In the first three years, the overall total was $67,965,862 – a staggering amount of money for a relatively small metropolitan area that includes the city of Syracuse and her suburbs, the towns and villages of Onondaga County, and to a lesser extent, some of the even smaller neighboring cities, towns and villages. As I reported in the 2015 recap, we turned sharply down last year – more than $7M – and the hope is that we will continue to see progress in the overall total.  Of course, a better sign of health would be an increase in the number of satisfied judgments; people’s ability to pay off their debt (or their willingness, as the case may be) is something else I’m hoping to see this year.  

This week, there were

• Six new judgments to hospitals, doctors, or other medical providers, totaling $41,436
• one satisfied judgment for $13,364 and
• no bankruptcies

Here’s the breakdown by hospital: 

• Crouse had four, including the satisfied judgment, for a net of $10,524
• St. Joe's had three, totaling $17,548
• SUNY Upstate had no filings listed

The paper publishes only those accounts of at least $5,000.

Quick Takes (v2): Implosions

Quick Takes 

Yesterday, the Grandstand at the New York State Fairgrounds here in Syracuse was imploded, to make way for a new RV park, part of our Sonofa Governor Andrew Cuomo's move to revitalize the Central New York economy.

Cuomo's $50M plan to turn the site into a year-round venue and an economic development draw for the area, was of course supplemented by the building of our new seasonal OnPhitheater (formally known as the Lakeview Amphitheater), another $50 million project that, by design, will cause people to either skip the Fair entirely, or leave it for a period of time, to attend Grandstand-level concerts off-campus during the Fair's run in late summer.

And, with the destruction of the Grandstand and the one-mile dirt track, so ends the car and horse racing at the Fair; constituents of those activities are left with only their memories, as are attendees of concerts at the Grandstand. The racing events that used to be held at the Grandstand may both eventually be held at the CNY Raceway Park, a multi-use 'need for speed' venture underway in Hastings, up in Oswego County. (Note: I'm not including any links to the Raceway Park, as more than a few take you to obviously fake sites that immediately ask you to download software of one sort or another; I encourage you to be cautious.)

Here's how the implosion activity was described in a local media report:

The push of a ceremonial plunger ignited 268 explosives at 260 different locations on the Grandstand, sending more than 5 million pounds of steel and concrete crashing to the ground.

The Gov himself was here for the demolition, further cementing his relationship with our County Executive, OnJoanie Mahoney.

Governor Andrew Cuomo and County Executive Joanie Mahoney attended the event and pushed the plunger together, along with a small group of friends. 

Ah, love.

Mayor Stephanie Miner was not in attendance at the implosion; rather, she was holding a press conference with US Representative Paul Tonko (D-Amsterdam), in which renewed calls for federal investment in local infrastructure were made. Some might say she was furthering the implosion of her relationship with both Joanie and Andy. This comes, of course, because of her well-known disagreement with Cuomo on state funding for these projects and her involvement with Building America's Future, a group that lobbies for infrastructure assistance for localities.

To put the Cuomo/Miner rift into simple terms, the Governor believes you can lead a horse to water.

He (and OnJoanie as well) are all about the kind of government assistance that makes people want to participate in something; a nice RV park will draw more visitors to the State Fair, for example, or a makeover will cause users of Penn Station (which he has declared bleak, dark and ugly) to feel better about their experience there, and about New York at the same time.

Miner, clearly, thinks there should be potable water there when the horse arrives.

This could be another long year.

Wondering, on Wednesday (v43)

Our Sonofa Governor Andrew Cuomo is at it again.

The other day he came out with a proposal to raise the wages of some 28,000 SUNY employees (but not CUNY employees) to $15/hour; this, on the heels of his making the same move for fast food workers.  Not at all surprisingly, this announcement was made at a union rally - no pandering there.

Cuomo press office graphic

Today's sugar plums come in the form of "major toll relief" for New Yorkers, via a plan to freeze tolls on the New York State Thruway (I-90) for the next four years, and that "businesses and drivers who use it most" would be eligible for a tax credit to cover the cost of some of their tolls.

Yes, a tax credit.

For Thruway tolls.

The plan?  According to Cuomo's announcement:

• 911,743 passenger vehicles with EZPass that pay $50 or more annually in tolls would get a tax credit worth 50% of their toll costs; the average annual savings is $97.
• 26,139 businesses and 976 commercial vehicles with EZPass that pay between $100 and $9,999 would get a 50% tax credit; average credit for the businesses is $686, and $1,872 for the commercial truck owners
• Farmers taking products to markets would get a 100% tax credit, regardless of how much they spend on tolls.

Between the toll freeze and the credits, today's announcement is over $113M in welfare benefits, er I mean economic assistance, primarily for Upstate residents and business owners, by the Gov's own estimate shown in the graphic above.

As usual, Cuomo has singled out a specific group of people - farmers - for special treatment, ignoring other businesses entirely. With no limit on the farm vehicles, we could be providing tax credits to huge businesses, not just small businesses for whom the tolls might be a considerable burden.  I have to wonder, this Wednesday, what about the small building contractors, painting companies, landscaping companies and the rest who rely on the Thruway to get to their jobs? We'll limit their tax credits to $5,000 because - why? Because they aren't the chosen ones this time around? Because they didn't donate enough to Cuomo's campaign?

And I wonder, does your employer reimburse you for tolls and mileage when you use your personal vehicle? Many do. I'm not certain how (or if) that is addressed in Cuomo's plan, but I'm sure lots of people would be happy to get 150% reimbursement for their tolls.  Especially since the threshold is so low -- a mere $4.17 per month in tolls makes a person eligible for the credit. I can't think off the top of my head how that equates to a burden for upstate residents, or how as little as one trip to the casino per month makes a person deserving of a tax credit.

Corporate welfare, personal tax gimmicks, artificial wages for selected industries only -- that's no way to run a railroad, folks.

Tuesday's Number: $297,435

Tuesday is the day my local paper, the Post-Standard, publishes the weekly business section. In addition to special features, tips from stock experts, budgeting advice and the like, we get the judgment and bankruptcy listings.

This is the fourth full year I’ve been tracking these numbers – I captured part of the year in 2012 – and the third year that I’ve captured filings by hospital.  I include anything that is likely a patient debt owed to a hospital, nursing home, physician or physician group, medical supplier, and so on; I do not include filings by insurance companies, many of which are so diversified it would not be a fair assumption that the filing is related to medical care or health insurance.

In the first three years, the overall total (judgments+bankruptcies, minus satisfied judgments) is $67,965,862 – a staggering amount of money for a relatively small metropolitan area that includes the city of Syracuse and her suburbs, the towns and villages of Onondaga County, and to a lesser extent, some of the even smaller cities, towns and villages in neighboring counties.  

This week, the first Tuesday’s Number of 2016, there were 

• 21 new judgments to hospitals, doctors, or other medical providers, totaling $290,672
• no satisfied judgments, and
• one bankruptcies, for $6,763

Here’s the breakdown by hospital: 

• Crouse had two, for $12,131
• St. Joe's had two, including the bankruptcy, for a total of $13,737
• SUNY Upstate had sixteen, totaling $246,398

A local physician’s group and another regional hospital south of Syracuse accounted for the remaining $25,169.

The paper publishes only those accounts of at least $5,000.

Sunday School 1/3/16

Sunday School posts provide an overview of what some of the talking heads were talking about on the Sunday news shows.

On Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace had Jersey Boy Chris Christie and Former Florida Governor Jeb! Bush. Christie was pressed on his criticism of Jeb!'s protege Marco Rubio never making it to Washington, even to vote against things he thinks are important, particularly calling out the spending bill that was just passed. Christie himself seems to have misplaced his GPS, as he's never in Jersey anymore, having basically moved to New Hampshire.  The difference between what he does and what Rubio does? Christie never stops working for the people of New Jersey.  Honest, he said so.

Bush, for his part, was asked (again) to explain why he's doing so poorly in the polls. Unlike Mike Huckabee, who was asked this question last year, Bush babbled about connecting with voter in the early states and being on the ballot in all 50 states.  When pressed  by Wallace, he noted that he made adjustments in his campaign, because that's how leaders lead.

Dana Bash was sitting in for Jake Tapper on CNN's State of the Union, where the guests were Republican Carly Fiorina and Democrat Bernie Sanders. Fiorina said a lot of stuff but not much of it was substantive or responsive to the questions. For example, when specifically asked what she would do about the escalating situation between Saudi Arabia and Iran, first she said our main goal was to help calm things down, and then said that as president she would provide leadership, strength and resolve. Not sure how the either of those statements impact the situation; Bash didn't press the issue. On a more important issue, her 'cursing' of the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Rose Bowl with her tweet that she was rooting against Stanford, her alma mater: tongue in cheek, it was, she said. Pandering, the rest of the universe said.

Sanders was asked about guns and whether President Obama's apparent plan for some kind of executive order, most likely on universal background checks, is the right thing to do. It almost has to be, Sanders noted, because Republicans in Congress won't do anything in a bipartisan manner on something that the vast majority of Americans support. On taxes, he was pressed for a 'tax plan' and noted that he's already offered a number of plans on taxes, including insanely rich people and corporations paying their fare share, increasing the salary limit for Social Security contributions, and others, and that more would be coming out before the Iowa vote. On calls from other candidates that Bill Clinton's sex life should be fair game, he noted that we have more important things to worry about. Interestingly, he also pointed out that in his last race in Vermont, he garnered 25% of Republican votes, so his move to attract Trump supporters makes perfect sense.

Finally, over on NBC's Meet the Press, Chuck Todd had former Ohio Governor John Kasich and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul. Kasich spent most of his time trying to convince Todd that he's actually ahead of Chris Christie, although Todd wasn't really having much of that  More interesting, by far was Rand Paul and his 'New Year's resolutions' which included spending less time voting in the Senate, so that Rubio and Cruz wouldn't look quite so bad, and giving Cruz more time to steal Paul's policy positions.

Todd also asked Paul if he was 'frustrated' with the campaign and maybe with the attention given to his party's front-runner (the one I try very hard not to mention), or whether it was something else. Paul schooled Todd on polls, how they're frequently wrong, and how the media is covering the guy at the top based on polls, or is perhaps not quite as even coverage of all candidates, "just saying."

Good for him.

Religion and Political Correctness

I thought I'd circle back on a post I did this past November, about a small business owner who chose to discourage customers who did not think the way he thought.

The business is a bakery; the discouragement comes from a sign, shown here, that the owner thought was politically incorrect, but which I think is simply rude.

It's one thing to bemoan political correctness; sometimes, I confess, it's too much for me (being a middle-aged white lady and all). It's something entirely different, though, to think that all of the things on the sign the owner posted on his door are mutually inclusive. As I suggested in the original post, one doesn't need to say "Merry Christmas" to be thankful for our troops and first responders, any more than one needs to believe in God to fly an American flag.

I got thinking about this political incorrectness, and what's really driving the sentiments. Is it all just a bunch of nonsense, fueled by Fox News? Is it angry Duck Dude and Duggar fans, lamenting the cancellation of shows that made gave them their heroes? Does it come from the 'denier' populace, those who think that Sandy Hook and other real, honest to goodness tragedies are 'false flags' manufactured by our government?

I think it's all of those, and then some. But it might also stem from something else -- the changing face of religion in our country.

Religious demographics in the US have been changing over time, with the greatest impact being a decrease in the number of Christians and an increase in the number of unaffiliated, according to a study released by the Pew Research Center last May.

The current study, done in 2014, and a prior one from 2007, each surveyed over 35,000 people, making the error margin less than 1%, much lower than we typically see with surveys and polls. Among the key findings:

• The percentage of people identifying as Christian dropped from 78.4%  in 2007 to 70.6% in 2014; Protestants and Catholics lost the most. 
• The percentage of 'unaffiliated' (which includes agnostics, atheists, and nothing-in-particulars ) grew from 16.1% to 22.8% during the same time period. The largest growth was in the last bucket, up 3.7%.
• People who married since 2010 chose a partner outside their faith 39% of the time; people who were married before 1960 married outside their faith only 5% of the time. 
• The percentage of non-whites grew in just about every Christian faith; overall the rate went from 29% to 34%.

These changes are significant, especially in a relatively short period of time. The new demographics may make people uncomfortable, but they aren't in and of themselves indicative of religious persecution, a war on Christmas or, even, a war on Christianity. 

In fact, in the face of the changing American religious landscape, the political power of the 'Religious Right' seems almost out of whack. And it seems to be these folks - the politicians and their stand-ins from the right-leaning media outlets - that are acting out, lashing out at anyone who doesn't share their beliefs, more than the Muslims and Buddhists and the nothing-in-particulars are lashing out at the Christians. 

Sometimes it's overt -- as with the battles over marriage equality, and over contraception. Sometimes it's a bit more subtle, as with the Ohio bakery and their 'love America like we do' message.

Whether it's a business exerting their personhood through a profession of its personal beliefs, or the politicians trying to legislate away anything that's not quite Christian or not quite American enough, I'm inspired to paraphrase Shakespeare's classic line from Hamlet: the right wing doth protest too much, methinks. 

Quick Takes (v1) : Housekeeping

Quick Takes

I figured since I've resolved to not start my personal New Year's resolutions until Sunday, I'd take the opportunity to do a little housekeeping on the blog today. I've made a few changes that I hope will help with readability and engagement.

The most obvious changes are the template and font. The page is a lot brighter and, I hope, easier to read. Somewhere, my Dad is smiling, I'm sure. As I was making the changes,  I recalled how he once told me he hated reading white print on a dark background.  Better late than never, eh, Pops? The bookshelf background is also a nod in his direction; as I noted in one of my early posts, I inherited Dad's books, which provide a colorful and comforting reminder of him each day. 

Several changes were made in the sidebar, and include:

• a new feature called Top Five, Past Thirty, where you'll be able to check out the five most popular posts of the past thirty days; 
• a tag cloud replaces the tag list;
• there's a new widget allowing you to easily subscribe to posts via email; and
• I've replaced my Twitter feed with a Newsreel feature, where you can see updates on Politics and Editorial content from Google's searches.  

Finally, I added an Election Day Countdown ticker, so we can all keep our eyes on the prize.

Hopefully you'll find the changes helpful, or at least not distracting. Your comments are always welcomed.

Wondering, on Wednesday (v42)

Are you tired of year-in-review (YIR) posts and articles and emails yet, or do you still have some slim thread of tolerance for them?

I confess I haven't paid attention to half of the YIR notifications I've seen. I've been getting them for a several weeks now, it seems. I think some of them arrived shortly after the Thanksgiving tryptophan was finally out of my system.

The early arrivals leave me wondering, this Wednesday, how the authors would feel if something huge happened before the end of the year, leaving their YIR in shambles.You know, some horrible tragedy (heaven forbid) or some wonderful news like a major celebrity wedding, or the discovery of a new planet, or a famous politician's birth certificate or green card, or something like that.

Kind of like what happens when we have early voting well in advance of election day, which leaves open the possibility that a dead person could win by a landslide, or some similar bizarre occurrence. That would likely mean that a court would probably have to determine the winner. And we all know how that works out, right?

Given that my own attention span for these things is slim, I'll keep my YIR brief.

Before the end of New Year's Eve Day, I'll have had three major milestones this year:  my 25th anniversary at my day job; my wedding, and my husband's retirement.

On my 24th work anniversary, I did a post about the foolishness of the Tax-Free NY program, wondering why it was necessary for me to pay taxes as an employee of a 78 year old company, when some new kid can move in to the Empire State, hire me and I would not have to pay income taxes for ten years.  I thought it was unfair to me, and of course unfair to my company as well.

I just checked the STARTUP NY website, which is the official home of the tax free project, and realized that, for my Central New York region, the selling points for our Quality of Life include two pictures, one of fishing in the Salmon River, the other of Chittenango Falls. What's more, three other regions also feature water activities as one of their two pictures.

I'm wondering, are we trying to lure fishing-related industries here? Trying to net a big one, maybe?

The last of the three  milestones, my husband's retirement, happens officially next year, but for all practical intents and purposes, it's happening on 12/31. In the morning, we'll get ready for work and head off on the commute together, for the last time.

I'm wondering, if I'm honest, how much things will change. I've got a few more years to work, although the jury's out on exactly how many.  A lot of that depends on how much of a mess the current Congress and POTUS make of our somewhat encouraged economy, and what happens next year when the new gang is elected.  Will we be trickling down?  Will everyone be making double their current wage (if things go up in tandem with increases in the minimum wage)? Will my 401(k) keep growing, and will Social Security be gone when I get there?  So much to wonder about, with no answers anywhere in sight.

What I don't wonder about, though, is whether this is the right decision for him, and for us. After 20 years at his second career, he's done enough, and had enough, and I want him to be around when I eventually make the decision to retire. We are better when we're happy, and we're happier when we're better.

I'm sure I'll have a twinge or two of something (I'm not sure yet exactly what), come January 4th when I have to go to work and My Sweet Baboo doesn't. But then, that's something for the 2016 YIR.

A final note:  I would be remiss if I didn't talk at at least a little about this blog. Thanks to all who've hung in there with me over the past few years -- I appreciate your tolerance, your interest, and your feedback. To new readers, thanks for giving me a chance. Your feedback is also warmly welcomed.

Here are the top five posts from 2015, all of which are part of two new themes I introduced this year:

1. My Middle-Aged White Lady Perspective: Don't Apologize for the Truth
2. Wondering, on Wednesday (v30)
3. Wondering, on Wednesday (v29)
4. Wondering, on Wednesday (v28)
5. My Middle-Aged White Lady Perspective: Words Matter

I'll still be a middle-aged white lady next year, and I'm sure I'll still be wondering, when Wednesdays roll around.

Hope to see you then!

Another Year of Tuesday's Numbers: 2015

Earlier today, I published the last Tuesday's Number post of the year, leading me to this, the annual recap.  How'd we do this year?
Let's take a look.

First, the final total for Q4 was $4,268,817, a little less than $500K higher than Q3, about $760K higher than Q2, but more than $1.2M less than Q1.

For the year, there were:

• 806 judgments filed, totaling $16,401,925
• 62 satisfied judgments, totaling $744,492 and
• 44 bankruptcies, adding $1,394,994

The total of judgments plus bankruptcies less satisfied judgments is $17,052,427, some $7.5 million less than 2013's $24,607,933 total and $9.2 million less than 2014's total of $26,305,502.

The number of filings is also down significantly. In 2013, there were 1279; in 2014, it spiked to 1411, and this year there were only 912. I say 'only' knowing that, for the folks included in these filings, there's probably little comfort in knowing that there are fewer people in the same boat with them this year.

Satisfied judgments dropped again this year by just shy of $97,000 compared to last year. In 2013, the number was much higher - $2,447,163. I'd like to see this number starting heading higher, at the same time as the overall filings continue to drop; repayment of debt being a positive sign for our overall sense of well-being and for the actual well-being of the local hospitals.

Speaking of the local hospitals, how did they fare this year?

• Crouse's total of $2,497,979 was down $3,085,456 from last year's total
• St Joe's total, $1,055,099 was $1,766,370 less than 2014
• SUNY's total, $10,740,987 was down sharply - by $7,195,576
• Community's total of $149,278 was up by $31,405

A small portion of the differences stems from a change in methodology. In 2015, I started subtracting the satisfied judgments from the overall totals and from each hospital. In 2014, I was able to make that adjustment in the final totals, but not in the individual hospital totals. Even so, there was a good drop for all of the hospitals this year compared to last - and that's one of the things I've been waiting to see in the tracking. 

Whether we've really turned a corner remains to be seen, but the final numbers for this year at least give me a sense of hope.

Here's to a healthy economy and a healthy population in 2016!

Tuesday's Number: $303,319

Tuesday is the day my local paper, the Syracuse Post-Standard, publishes the weekly business section. In addition to special features, tips from stock experts, budgeting advice and the like, we get the judgment and bankruptcy listings.

Since mid-2012, I’ve been tracking health care related filings. I include anything that is likely a patient debt owed to a hospital, nursing home, physician or physician group, medical supplier, and so on; I do not include filings by insurance companies, many of which are so diversified it would not be a fair assumption that the filing is related to medical care or health insurance.

This week, the final Tuesday of 2015, there were 

• 23 new judgments to hospitals, doctors, or other medical providers, totaling $303,319
• no satisfied judgments and
• no bankruptcies

Here’s the breakdown by hospital: 

• Crouse had three, for $34,700
• St. Joes had six, for a total of $60,042
• SUNY Upstate had fourteen, totaling $208,577

The paper publishes only those accounts of at least $5,000.

I'll have the year-end summary later.

More Money is Not the Answer

Common Cause New York has released the latest information on outside income for New York's legislators. There's a lot of it for some of our elected officials, who make a minimum of $79,500 for their part-time jobs (those in leadership positions make quite a bit more).

The chart at right shows where the outside money comes from, by industry. Not surprisingly, the majority of members with outside income are lawyers; after all, they're lawmakers. 

Common Cause notes that, on the plus side, some 60% of legislators elected before 2014 report no outside income, and they surmise that "many, if not all" of the new class of legislators no longer hold their day jobs. 

The group also believes that, in light of the recent guilty verdicts for former State Senate leader Dean Skelos and former Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver, the time is now to make some changes.  And up to that point, I agree with them -- we differ, however, on how to fix the problem.

Common Cause would like to see the following changes

• A ban on outside income
• a full-time legislature
• a pay raise for members

Their thinking is, if we turned the legislators into full-time employees of New York taxpayers, and gave them a raise, they wouldn't need to have outside income. And if they don't have outside income, they can't be 'bought' by outside interests.

My thinking is, if they're ethical people, it doesn't matter whether they're paid more or work full time or are allowed to continue earning income as veterinarians or funeral directors or owners of ice cream stands. I don't think it's necessary for them to figure out ways to convert their businesses into trusts or whatever it is they'd need to do in order to remove themselves from their 'real' careers while they served part time as our representatives.

We need our elected officials to stop looking at their seats as permanent possessions, as jobs for life instead of what they should be: short-term opportunities to serve the public. I want them to have jobs and families and careers and lives outside their public service - because I think they'd be better public servants. I want there to be teachers or auction house owners and all the rest, working part time for the citizens of New York. I'm perfectly OK with that.

What I do have a problem with, is how long some of these folks have been in office. 

In the Assembly, Gary Finch, the funeral services guy, was elected in 1999. Will Barclay was elected in 2002. Stephen Hawley, the big winner in the outside income game, was elected in 2006. 

Over in the Senate, it's even more glaring. Kenneth LaValle was elected in 1976, the year I got out of high school.

Skelos, one of the Three Amigos our Sonofa Gov Andrew Cuomo giggled about earlier this year at his economic speech, was elected in 1984. Kemp Hannon, 1989; Mike Nozzolio, 1992.

Is it the outside income that's the issue, or is it the amount of time these folks spend in Albany?

Is it outside income, or simply that some of them can't resist the benefits that come their way, the money to keep them in office, or jobs for their kids -- benefits that come to them because of the power they have, the power that comes with longevity?

Is it outside income, or is it the unending need to raise money for the next election, money from big donors who stand to benefit from laws passed by the people who receive the donations?

If you ask me, we do not need full-time legislators with bigger salaries and bigger pensions. We need term limits and we need real campaign finance reform.

• If a legislator is not worried about the next election, and instead is focused on serving the public for the term of the election they just won, we'll be better off. 
• When a legislator doesn't need to protect a pension, and instead is focused on protecting the environment, or jobs, or dwindling tax dollars, we'll be better off.
• When a legislator knows that they can't use campaign funds for whatever they please, we'll be better off. 
• When a legislator knows that they have an equal opportunity to participate, and that their constituents will have equal representation, we'll be better off. 
• When we elect people who know what the rules are, know they're going to be held accountable to the rules, and know that there will be no personal nest-feathering allowed, we'll be better off.

It all starts with term limits. 

Make Some Room at the Inn

The classic "reason for the season" story of the Christmas holiday is the one of Joseph and Mary reporting to Bethlehem to be counted in the Roman census. Being told there's "no room at the inn" when they stopped to rest, they ended up bedded down in the manger, where Jesus was born. The rest, as they say, is history.

Regular readers know I'm not a religious person; I will go to church tonight with my husband, as I have for the past few years. I won't take communion or anything - to me, it seems dishonest. But I will enjoy the peace and serenity and the traditional Christmas carols, including the one verse of Silent Night that we'll sing in German, a tradition at his Lutheran church.

History and tradition, wrapped in and around Christmas, as similarly the other seasonal holidays are steeped in their own history and tradition - not the same, but nonetheless important to those who celebrating.

I wonder, on Christmas Eve, how well we're doing given some of the common refrains we're hearing to today's carols. You know what I mean, right?

If you don't believe in (my) God, go back where you came from.

We've got enough fill-in-the-blank-with-your-pet-constituency now, we don't need any more fill-in-the-blank-with-your-least-favorite-fellow-man freeloading off of us.

If you want to live in America, learn to speak and act like an American. 

How well are we doing, when we want to 'return to sender' anyone who worships a different supreme being, or who doesn't worship one at all?  I honestly don't know where it is that I would "go back to" when the time comes for me to leave. And what does our country do when all of the doctors and scientists and professors and policemen and military members and athletes and musicians and everyone else are gone?  Who will do the work, and save lives, and cure cancer, and teach, and play football and basketball? What will happen to the fantasy leagues?

How well are we doing when the politicians who yell from our televisions and web pages and editorial pages and wherever else, the thousands of them dancing in the streets since 9/11, that we have enough homeless and hungry veterans and homeless and hungry children here in America that we can't take care of already, so we can't be the beacon of hope and light for the rest of the world anymore,  are the same politicians who work tirelessly to cut state and federal government budgets to the bone, slashing programs that could help the very same people they find so commercially valuable now? How are we doing?

How well are we doing when we rail against people from foreign countries, a very small percentage of whom may pose some threat to us, and at the same time we passively ignore or actively prevent opportunities to keep Americans who speak like us and look like us from imparting great harm on their fellow citizens, especially those who may look or act differently?

How well are we doing when we as Americans vow to restrict the rights of our fellow Americans, in the name of our faith? And when we confer greater rights on the unborn than we do living people? And when we're willing to take health care opportunities away from men, women and children?

On Christmas Eve, I have three wishes.

My first wish is that we find it in our hearts to make some room at the inn, to welcome all Americans into the fold, to offer warmth, and food, and shelter. To offer help, and hope, and opportunity.

My second wish is that we find it in our hearts to make some room at the inn for those who look to America as still the greatest country on earth, who reach out towards our beacon of freedom, and that we somehow can live up to their expectations.

My third wish is that the peace and love that are so present tonight on Christmas Eve and tomorrow on Christmas day will be as present the day after tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that.

Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays. Peace be with you.

Tuesday's Number: $179,016

Tuesday is the day my local paper, the Syracuse Post-Standard, publishes the weekly business section. In addition to special features, tips from stock experts, budgeting advice and the like, we get the judgment and bankruptcy listings.

Since mid-2012, I’ve been tracking health care related filings. I include anything that is likely a patient debt owed to a hospital, nursing home, physician or physician group, medical supplier, and so on; I do not include filings by insurance companies, many of which are so diversified it would not be a fair assumption that the filing is related to medical care or health insurance.

This week, there were 

• fourteen new judgments to hospitals, doctors, or other medical providers, totaling $190,890
• four satisfied judgments, for $32,371
• and one bankruptcy, for $20,397

Here’s the breakdown by hospital: 

• Crouse had eight, including three repayments, for a net of $15,903
• St. Joes had four, with one repayment, for a total of $32,873
• SUNY Upstate had six, totaling $125,102

A local orthopedic group had the remaining judgment, for $5,138.  

The paper publishes only those accounts of at least $5,000.

The Update Desk: Poor Ethan

Almost exactly two years ago, I did a post about Ethan Couch, the spoiled brat who killed four people while he was driving in a drunken stupor down in Texas.

Poor Ethan. He was 'victimized' by his horrible parents and their habit of throwing money around instead of dispensing love, and their apparent lack of humanity.

Poor Ethan. Four people dead, and he was sentenced to 10 years of probation, not jail time, because of his affluenza. That's what it's called, when your rich parents and don't teach you right from wrong.

Well, to the surprise of practically no one, Poor Ethan is now missing. He hasn't been in contact with his probation officer in 'several days' and he's now been named the top fugitive by the Tarrant County Sheriff.

Poor Ethan. There's some thought that he fled because someone had him on video potentially violating his probation; he (or someone who closely resembles him) was playing beer pong at a party, which would be a no-no. Or, maybe he fled because his mother didn't want to hang around for another 8 years with her son in such a horrible situation: free to walk around, free to do basically everything that his victims will never do again.

When they find him, which I hope happens soon, he'll end up in jail; and hopefully so will both of his parents. As I noted in the older post, if the parents were to blame for how Ethan turned out,  they deserve to be punished right along side their son.

Poor Ethan. Let's bring you home, so you might get the chance to live the life that normal people live: a life where actions have consequences, where expectations abound, and where affluenza is not an excuse for murder.

Grains of Salt (v4): Never a Good Time

Our County Executive Joanie Mahoney has apparently been cured of her significant paycheck envy, now that she's getting a 27.3% raise.

Mahoney, in an exclusive interview with CNYCentral's Michael Benny, noted in the nicest possible way her dissatisfaction with the fact that she hadn't had a raise but others had.

Previous to my time in office, when Nick Pirro was the County Executive, there was a raise for the office every single year for the eight years previous to my getting there...

I would just point out to people that none of those raises came along the way so it's not like you're going to go back and make up for all of the years that there was no raise...

The CSEA employees were collecting those raises every year and the County Executive was not.

Every county employee that's full time including every elected official has gotten a raise within the last eight years with the exception of this position. 

Mahoney contends that, while many taxpayers apparently don't recall, this was addressed last December, so it did sort of meet her request that it be taken up before the election. And she basically blames her constituents for their "busy lives" and not remembering that this had been discussed, so there really shouldn't be any complaints now.

When it was raised back then, there was concern about the timing.  Here's what Joanie says:

At that time, some of the criticism was that it shouldn't happen mid-term and that it should be for a new term so they asked to put it off for a year. 

Mahoney also points out, lest we have forgotten, that this was discussed during her campaign last year, and for the legislators last year.

All along the way on the campaign trail, I was asked about raises, county legislators were asked about raises... The fact of the matter is, this was talked about all year long, it did go through the campaign process. You know, I had all of the lumps of a raise on the campaign trail, without having actually gotten the raise.

When questioned about having the County Executive get the raise, while some county employees don't yet have a contract, she noted that

... There's never going to be a good time. There is never a time that you would propose raises for elected officials that everyone would say "that's a great idea" so you have to sort of set that aside.

After pointing out (again) that the union contract included retroactive increases, but that she wasn't getting any retro pay, she noted (again)

...there's never going to be a time that people think it's a good idea.

Actually, Joanie, there IS a good time - if you agree that elected officials should get a raise at all, given that they get pensions (including those who hold part-time positions) and benefits, and given that they know going in what the position pays. In fact, there are a couple of them.

The Legislature actually came close to one of them just last year.

The law that was proposed last December and ultimately dropped earlier this year would have immediately bumped up the salary for the County Executive, County Sheriff, County Comptroller and County Clerk, but would have put off changes for the legislators until the beginning of the new term in 2016. A simple tweak - making all of the changes effective at the beginning of the next term, rather than having some of them be effective upon adoption of the bill, would have been a much more honest way to do this.

Couple the revised proposal with a public hearing or two, at different times when people could actually attend them, and get out some even half-hearted communications, and you could have a clean process, with public input, and it could have been included in the budget process. I'd be willing to bet that CNYCentral would love to have streamed the public hearings on one of their stations.

Another good time, and good way, to do this would be to put it to a referendum. For example, what if the ballot this past November included a question like this:

The Office of the Onondaga County Executive has not had a salary increase in eight years. The current salary for this elected position is $122,413. This position is not term-limited, and includes a pension and benefits. It is proposed that the salary be tied to the CPI-E (Consumer Price Index- Elderly) and changed each year in a percentage consistent with changes in Social Security payments to Onondaga County citizens.

Do you favor or oppose this proposal?

Similar ballot questions could be placed for all of the other elected positions, putting everyone on equal footing with the County Executive in terms of how and when their salaries could change.

I'm sure the wording could be tweaked a little, if needed, although the statement as written is factual. And I'm sure there's probably a way to get the referendum at the top of the front page of the ballot, where people could see it easily.

If the majority of the citizens you and the Legislature represent voted in favor of this proposal, you'd get the same percentage of raise that my elderly mom gets; and sometimes, as she does, you'd get nothing.

Back to Joanie. When pressed by Benny on whether citizens should have some opportunity to chime in, to have a 'community conversation' on this issue, she - like most politicians who are not subject to term limits, and who have the overwhelming benefit of incumbency -- offered one last shot:

Oh absolutely, and that's why voters have the right every two years with the Legislature and every four years with the County Executive to make their voices heard... 

Thanks for the reminder.

Social Media and Terrorism

Much has been made lately about using social media to combat terrorism. What people say on their pages, and in their comments, and in their emails and what not can (and should) be used to identify potential terrorists, those radicals who would do us harm, we're told.

See, we coulda stopped that Muslim woman, that foreigner, from killing 14 people and wounding 22 in San Bernadino if only we had been paying attention to what she had been saying and looking at and who she had been talking to on Facebook. The fact that her fellow trigger puller, her husband, was born and raised right here in The Homeland, well, let's not talk about that.

Just like we won't talk about Scott Anthony Orton, known as 'Joseywhales' on multiple social media sites. He's an American, a white man from Washington State, and he's an honest-to-goodness terrorist, even though I suspect no Republican presidential candidate would agree with me on that.

Orton was arrested for making threats against employees of StemExpress, the biotech firm which gained fame and notoriety earlier this year when the undercover videos of Planned Parenthood employees talking about baby parts came out. StemExpress is one of the companies on the receiving end of the aborted tissue, which is used by researchers for things like, you know, trying to cure cancer and find other ways to save lives, as opposed to the videos themselves which are used to inflame people like Orton, and the American terrorist who killed three people at the Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs, and those aforementioned Republican presidential candidates.

Orton threatened people in California using social media from his terrorist base in Washington, saying things like:

The management of StemExpress should be taken by force and killed in the streets today.

Stop the death of innocents, Kill the killers.

Now you might think that's OK  -- I mean, what's a little free speech among friends, right?

How about this:

Kill StemExpress employees. I'll pay you for it.

StemExpress your lives don't matter nearly as much as your deaths do.

Or this:

The (specific person) of StemExpress is a death profiteer. The (specific person) of StemExpress should be hung by the neck using piano wire and propped up on the lawn in front of the building with a note attached.

Or this:

(Specific person) must die. End of story. If we as humanity accept her actions, we're to be judged in the harshest manner.

He had also threatened a specific Planned Parenthood employee. And another Fox Fanatic. And the FBI. And get this: the FBI has known about him, they admit, since 2009. That was when he sent threatening emails to the city council where he lives.

I am coming for you, creeps. You have committed crimes against freedom. You MUST be put out of office, permanently, and I loathe you for your deeds.

Guess who else he's threatened?

I'll pay $10,000 to whomever takes out Marilyn Mosby (the prosecutor in  Baltimore's Freddie Gray death-in-police-custody case).

 I'd pay to have a hit on Mosby. She needs to be taken out.

I'll pay ten thousand dollars to the one who fires the shot that takes out Marilyn Mosby. 

Or this one:

N----- Holder you are a dead man you are a dead man walking. We got us a dead man walking here. Dead man walking.

And then there are these:

WE NEED VIOLENCE AT 1600 PENNSYLVANIA AVE!

Hey Barack ever seen a skull explode?

Hey Barack you should face a firing squad.

Hey Barack, you should hang by your neck until your feet stop kickin.

Everyone knew this guy was a terrorist. Fox certainly knew it, since he was a very active participant on their comment boards. Everyone knew he was threatening all kinds of people on multiple social media sites. Screen captures had been done, they'd been reported. For six years, this guy has been terrorizing American citizens, including FBI agents, a (black) prosecutor, the (black) Attorney General and the (black) President of the United States.

The argument can be made that this was just talk, he's not a real threat, he was just shooting his mouth off, I mean, does this guy even have $10K? Je Suis Charlie Hebdo, and all. It's just free speech.

When Orton appeared in court, the prosecutor asked that he be held without bail. Despite that request, and despite his history, he was released on an appearance bond and told to come back at the end of December.

After all, it's not like he had a Pakistani wife or anything.

If we're really going to use social media to combat terrorism, we need to open our eyes, accept the fact - and deal with the fact - that terrorism doesn't only come from outside our borders, and that it's not only radical Islamist jihadis that we need to worry about.

We ignore that at our continued peril.

Tuesday's Number: ($113,082)

Tuesday is the day my local paper, the Syracuse Post-Standard, publishes the weekly business section. In addition to special features, tips from stock experts, budgeting advice and the like, we get the judgment and bankruptcy listings.

Since mid-2012, I’ve been tracking health care related filings. I include anything that is likely a patient debt owed to a hospital, nursing home, physician or physician group, medical supplier, and so on; I do not include filings by insurance companies, many of which are so diversified it would not be a fair assumption that the filing is related to medical care or health insurance.

This week, a slow week to be sure, there were 

• six new judgments to hospitals, doctors, or other medical providers, totaling $58,530
• one satisfied judgment, for $171,432 and
• no bankruptcies

Here’s the breakdown by hospital:

• Crouse had two, totaling $22,900
• St. Joe's had one, for $6,283
• SUNY Upstate had four, for a net negative of $142,265

The paper publishes only those accounts of at least $5,000.

Make America Great Again

I will not speak his name in this post.

I hope I have the strength to never speak it again, but I anticipate I will be weak, as I am when there's an unarmed jar of peanuts or perhaps some kettle chips in the house.

That we have a person leading the field in the race to be the next leader of the free world who says what this man says, and perhaps worse, believes what this man may actually believe, is frightening. It's maddening. It's incomprehensible. It's a crying shame.

I can't take it any more.

He is the Mr Potato Head of candidates: a eye or two of racism, a mouth full of hate, a nose for the news, a couple of hands full of angry-white-man bluster, and two feet covered in age-old fear of the different, fear of a changing world.

Make America Great Again, he says, his brand splattered across "Made in Your Pick of Foreign Countries" clothing, and that hat.

Make America Great Again, he says, as he insults all of our allies; as he speaks to Jewish Republicans and laments that he's not able to get in touch with his daughter on a Saturday now (her husband is Jewish), ha ha ha.

Make America Great Again, he says, publicly blasting anyone who questions his ridiculous statements, who challenges his truly bizarre statements, threatening anyone who dares defy him.

Make America Great Again, he says, with his plans to build an actual wall, as well as a numerous 'virtual' walls, between us and the world, between us and sanity, between us and our future.

Make America Great Again, he says, he's a friend of the blacks and the Mexicans and the Muslims and the Jews and the veterans and the women he says, as

• he encourages his supporters, his thugs, to physically assault people who dare exercise their free speech rights at his campaign stops, because they deserve that and more for distracting people from his sacred words of wisdom, and 
• as he insults women and "blood coming out of their wherever" but he didn't mean THAT, oh no, he would never say anything like that, he loves the women, and
• as he asks people of color to perform, as if minstrels, on stage (snicker snicker) and
• as he tries to coerce a donation to veterans from a television network, this from a man who has never served his country, but only himself.

Make America Great Again?  Please. This man who professes to be Christian as he slams the faith of actual Christians, and lies about being a member of a church, this great Christian man who ogles his own daughter on national television, she's hot, I'd date her if she weren't my daughter, har har har.

Make America Great Again?

Make him go away, and maybe we stand a chance.