;)
The Commentariat -- Nov. 24, 2013
Failure may have a thousand fathers, but CGI Federal, the main software contractor on Healthcare.gov, is the Big Daddy of them all. Amy Goldstein & Juliet Eilperin of the Washington Post report. CW: Goldstein & Eilperin don't say so, but some of CGI's excuses sound totally phony to me. For instance, they claim that they couldn't write key code because the adminstration hadn't established minimum insurance requirements. That's sort of like saying you can't code an app because you haven't decided what you will charge customers for it. Obviously, you can code dummy requirements & plug in the real ones later.
Michael Memoli of the Los Angeles Times on the new Democratic Senators who drove the filibuster change. 'When [Jeff] Merkley [Oregon], as a prospective candidate, first met with [Majority Leader Harry] Reid ahead of the 2008 election, he told the leader that filibuster reform was one of his top priorities. Reid put his head in his hands.... 'It's not about the filibuster,' Reid admonished the younger man. 'It's about the culture. We've got to change the culture.' Six years later, the culture is the same and the filibuster is gone." ...
... Leigh Ann Caldwell of CNN credits liberal bloggers for initiating filibuster reform.
Kate McDonough of Salon: Sen. "Marco Rubio [RTP-Fla.] over the weekend delivered the keynote address at a fundraising event for the Florida Family Policy Council, a conservative organization that promotes so-called ex-gay conversion therapy and believes that gay parents are a 'threat' to their children, among other odious views.... The organization ... also has a broader political agenda that includes abolishing reproductive rights and teaching creationist pseudo-science in public schools. Rubio ... used his address to explain why the separation of church and state is not even worth debating because 'God is everywhere' and 'doesn't need our permission to be anywhere.' Via Steve Benen. CW: Say, MAG, can I come up to Maine & stay at your place if I feed the sled dogs? Florida is really too embarrassing.
Juan Cole: "The decade-long Neoconservative plot to take the United States to war against Iran appears to have been foiled." Thanks to contributor safari for the link. See also today's News Ledes.
Norimitsu Onishi of the New York Times: "Nearly three years of bloody civil war in Syria have created what the United Nations, governments and international humanitarian organizations describe as the most challenging refugee crisis in a generation -- bigger than the one unleashed by the Rwandan genocide and laden with the sectarianism of the Balkan wars. With no end in sight in the conflict and with large parts of Syria already destroyed, governments and organizations are quietly preparing for the refugee crisis to last years."
Local News
Who Could Have Known? Jonathan Kaminsky of Reuters: "Significantly more drivers pulled over by police in Washington state are testing positive for marijuana since legalization of the drug's recreational use took effect in January, according to figures released this week by the Washington State Patrol."
Can a high-school teacher claim a First Amendment right to teach creationism, display Christian iconography in the classroom & defy his superiors' orders to cut it out? The teacher lost his case before the Ohio State Supreme Court. But. As Steve Benen writes, "This wouldn't appear to be a tough call. The U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled that, under the First Amendment, public schools cannot teach creationism as science -- a detail this teacher ignored. That, in conjunction with his brazen disregard for the school district's instructions, seems to make dismissal a no-brainer. But here's the thing that jumps out: it was a 4-3 ruling. In other words, three justices on the Ohio Supreme Court concluded that the teacher in question was justified in blowing off the school district, scientific cannon, modern biology, the religious liberties of his students, and legal precedent."
News Ledes
New York Times: "The United States and five other world powers announced a landmark accord Sunday morning that would temporarily freeze Iran's nuclear program and lay the foundation for a more sweeping agreement." ...
... Washington Post: "Israeli leaders denounced the interim Iranian nuclear pact signed by the United States and five world powers as an historic mistake that does little to reverse Iran's nuclear ambitions and instead makes the world a more dangerous place."
On the Afghan Front. Dubya's Handpicked President For Life Is Still Crazy. New York Times: "A grand council called by President Hamid Karzai approved a security agreement with the United States on Sunday, but the Afghan president said he wanted to keep negotiating, throwing into confusion and uncertainty future relations between the two countries."
Mavis Lever Batey. Undated photograph. Via the Scotsman.New York Times: Mavis Lever Batey, one of the real Bletchley Girls, died on November 12 at age 92. A fascinating woman. Her Los Angeles Times obituary is here.
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Reader Comments (19)
I gotta hope CGI is out of business after this.
@Haley Simon. Until government procurement regulations and procedures are "fixed" (i.e., re-envisioned, simplified, and cleaned up), CGI will never go out of business. The game is a lawyer-cum-bean counter game. It has nothing to do with competence, and everything to do with pretending government should be run like WalMart or Enron.
@Haley Simon wrote yesterday, "Marie, regarding how Medicare limits end-of-life care... The trouble is the family (or patient) has no idea what will be their share of the financial costs nor in any shape to consider the cost of care. Those damn bills do not show up for months and it takes another six months to 'decode' them. Far to late to help make decisions."
In my husband's case that wasn't true. Hospital personnel & auxiliary staff told us that Medicare would pay for all of my husband's rehab or hospice care (up to a certain number of days). They also explained how often/long Medicare paid for my husband's visiting nurses & therapists.
It's true that I didn't check to see what part of my husband's hospital bill & other services I would have to pay, but I knew we had always paid a portion of these bills, so I was of the impression (which turned out to be true) that we would pay about 20 percent of his hospital bill. Medicare paid most of the other charges, which surprised me.
Without going into detail, I can say that the relative cost factors had an impact on my husband's decisions about his care.
I don't know how other institutions handle this, but the medical personnel here in Southwest Florida were very forthcoming.
Marie
Reuters is reporting that an agreement has been reached with Iran. A major break through after years of hostilities. I'm sure Bibi will throw a major f-in hissy fit over this, joined by US neo-cons. Good on Rouhani for getting an agreement before the Ayatollah slammed the door shut.
http://news.yahoo.com/iran-nuclear-deal-reached-geneva-021222943.html
Marie, I wonder if it isn't sometimes a matter of suddeness. My husband's colon cancer was diagnosed at stage 4 and he died two months later. We had no time for much rational thinking especially since he was convinced he would make it. There could be no discussion of hospice.
Hi Haley-
I do not think you are missing anything. I very much value your comments. I think the deal about David Brooks and his advice to the college students is not WHAT he said but WHO said it. This guy is so arrogant and unself-aware! I would respect his words if they came from an insightful person with a history of relational thoughtfulness. My fantasy is that Brookstone's wife, Sarah, (who changed her name from Jane when she married him--think about THAT), thought about leaving his ass for years--but waited until the kids were almost grown. I.E., Empty Nest.
Do not know that to be true, but I worked with quite a few women in this situation during my time as a family therapist. I think of David Brooks as a "type" of clueless male--whose greatest compliment about his wife is her "patience!" ICK! Gimme a break.
P.S. I feel for you with your husband's terminal illness and the suddenness of his diagnosis and death. I think that is a sad and painful situation, and none of us can possibly be prepared to deal with it. That is why "death with dignity" is so important to me, because it does give an option to deal with situations like yours--although your husband may not have chosen it, since he was in denial. My compassion goes out to you! How terrible this must have been for you to have to deal with.
@Haley Simon & @Kate Madison. I don't think of fighting illness as being "in denial." I think it's a sensible, brave reaction to a supremely difficult situation: a reaction that requires super-human effort. Sometimes it even works. Many a "miracle cure" can be pegged to pure willpower.
My husband, too, had a short final illness. During that time, I never directly lied to him about what I thought his "chances" were. But I also never discouraged him from trying to get the better of his failing body and I did everything I could to facilitate his optimism -- without being totally unrealistic or causing him more discomfort than comfort. I'm sure he knew his body was winning the battle. I consider his fight to the last a profile in courage, not an act of delusion. Without knowing him, I would guess Haley Simon's husband had the same kind of grit. I admire him for it.
Marie
Kate, thanks.
Marie, I'm going to be a big disappointment when I kick the bucket. No grit left. But I promise not to be eligible for the Munch Award either.
@ Diane
Not sure if you've already read it, but Juan Cole has a great post about the Iran deal that puts it into pretty good perspective.
http://www.juancole.com/
This deal could have much greater implications down the road, especially as its opens up even wider the diplomatic options going forward. Netanyahoo and Lieberman are surely going to soil their diapers numerous times over this week as they conjure up images of bearded satans dropping mushroom clouds throughout the West. Let 'em cry it out. Saber-rattling is going to be much more difficult going forward, and we're all better off for that. If Israel or Saudi Arabia wants a war with Iran, they can send their own citizens into harms way.
It's hard to imagine such a thawing in diplomatic relations had, heaven forbid, Romney/Ryan been elected. Even with the moderate Rouhani coming into office, it's almost certain the neoCONS would have buried any attempt at reconciliation in the dirt just like Bush/Cheney did in 2003.
The truth that elections have consequences can be seen loud and clear on this front.
Ah yes, just on time. Cue the hyperbolic doomsday rhetoric:
“Today the world has become a much more dangerous place because the most dangerous regime in the world has taken a significant step toward attaining the most dangerous weapon in the world,” the prime minister said. DANGER! DANGER! DANGER!
"Naftali Bennett, Israel’s economic minister and key member of Netanyahu’s governing coalition, said, “if a nuclear suitcase blows up in New York or Madrid five years from now, it will be because of the deal that was signed this morning."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/israel-says-iran-deal-makes-world-more-dangerous/2013/11/24/e0e347de-54f9-11e3-bdbf-097ab2a3dc2b_story.html
I can only imagine, but it's gotta be depressing living in Israel and hearing this doomsday rhetoric every single day. It'd be like us still having to put up with Dubya's fear mongering on a daily basis.
Remember the creation of the daily "Terrorist Threat Index?" Does that still exist? Oh shit, today is 'orange' like every other day, I guess I should stay home and build up my ration stockpile while I clean my guns waiting for impending Armageddon. Pathetic.
Thankfully I still remember the government approved videos of what to do in case a nuclear bomb goes off. Just hide under my desk and all will be fine.
@Marie: More embarrassment from Florida: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trey-radels-questionable-rehab/2013/11/23/e357f78c-53b7-11e3-9fe0-fd2ca728e67c_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines
Radel hasn't been in DC that long. IMHO he HAD to seek out that dealer. What a stupid hypocrite. Did he really think that no one would find out about his arrest and that it wouldn't be plastered all over the news? I'm with the Wapo Editors. He's only sorry that he got caught. Sorry as an an adjective fits him to a T.
Dana Milbank has more:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/dana-milbank-trey-radel--from-lawmaker-to-lawbreaker/2013/11/20/34f7e072-5226-11e3-9fe0-fd2ca728e67c_story.html
Well, you won't have a congresscritter representing you while he's on leave of absence. Maybe that's a good thing. Speaking of a lack of character, this guy has zero character.
@Safari. Thank for the link. Juan Cole ( from my alma mater) is a knowledgeable voice indeed.
Going forward, I think Netanyahu will be increasingly recognized globally as an aggressor whose methods are archaic. His warning of an Iranian suitcase bomb is just desperate and sophomoric. He has been unabashed in his disgust for Obama's preference for diplomacy. Anything but bombs and blood is weakness to Netanyahu. Given Israeli history, his position is understandable but no longer effective.
Don't misunderstand, there's a lot of ground to cover before we are all harmonious in our rendition of We are the World. I think enormous praise should go to Rouhani who was able to keep the Ayatollah in check long enough to have some meaningful negotiations. I believe the negotiation space he was given was narrow and fleeting.
I'm pretty sure the GOP will spin this historic break through as typical Obama "weakness" and "naivete". Throw in some hyperbole about Benghazi. The GOP will be madly clapping to the Bibi beat and warning of those lethal suitcases to come.
The state of Israel is in a state about giving Iran even a little bitty bit of leeway (called diplomacy) on anything. I'm with safari who says it must be pretty depressing to live under the doomsday bell jar every single day. According to some who live there and write about what it is like say that to this day it is still a taboo in that society to make clear the fact that the state of Israel was founded at the cost of another people.
The other day when we were discussing the Kennedy assassination and I mentioned the killings of other notables I forgot that George Wallace was also shot by another nut job––Arthur Bremmer who just wanted to be famous. He had planned to shoot Nixon, but had trouble having access at the time. After his conviction his father said through clenched teeth: "Probably if he [Arthur] was a black or some other Communist agitator he's be free."
Today's NYTimes Harwood analysis of how wary the White House remains of the word "redistribution"
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/24/us/dont-dare-call-the-health-law-redistribution.html?hp&_r=0
is a nice Sunday companion piece to the Ohio Supremes' apparent difficulty deciding that people hired by the public to teach the young should not be allowed to lie to them about the universe they are supposed prepare the children to live in.
Creationism is a lie because it has no empirical basis. It's a lie of commission. Failure to talk about "redistribution" is a lie of omission because that's what humans do, always, everywhere, since the moment we were "created." Physicists properly define work as moving anything from one place to another; atoms, dust or ingots or ideas, it's all work and it's what we do just be being alive. To not acknowledge, hell trumpet, that obvious truth abandons the field of reality to those who wish to define redistribution as unnatural or immoral, something done by the government to hard-working Americans. And handily, their noisy outrage obscures who benefits most from the present movement of resources, most often those who are lying the loudest.
You would think it would be more obvious, for the markers we use to symbolize the value of our "work" move, too. We have an entire industry--now our largest-- devoted to following and manipulating the way those markers move. We know that since Reagan they have been moving mostly in one direction, up. Now that's redistribution for you. But we still don't want to call it what it is.
So the creationism lie is about something that does't exist; the redistribution is about something that does, and this morning wondering what they have in common, I think I have it.
Lies cover up the uncomfortable. We don't like to think about deep mysteries, like our beginnings and endings, or the tough issues of social and economic justice. So we make up things.
The other day my four year old granddaughter told me the applesauce I made was "delicious." Turned out, she hadn't yet tasted it. Maybe because she knows how delicate I am, she didn't want to hurt my feelings.
Now I'm wondering how many lies we'll hear about the Iran deal? I don't like to think about nuclear Armageddon either.
End of Sunday sermon.
Re: End of Life. If one goes on hospice, it's paid for Medicare Part A, not B.
Several years ago a friend of mine here in Georgia developed a melanoma and had it removed. Unfortunately, that didn't work. It metastasized throughout his body. He had several chemo treatments that couldn't keep up with the cancer. Finally, the oncologist said that was enough--no more. He went on hospice and died a couple of months later. Not all doctors will try to keep a hopeless patient alive. Fortunately, he and his wife decided against heroic measures to keep him alive a little longer, even if such were available. He died peacefully at home in his own bed.
On the other hand, my wife's cousins kept their mother on life support in a coma for TWO YEARS. The life support was the only thing that kept her alive, if you can call it that. She never showed a sign of regaining consciousness. That inspired my wife and me to see a lawyer and have him draw up our wills, living wills, and general power of attorney for health care; i.e, who can "pull the plug." You have to be careful when choosing doctors, hospitals, etc,, not all of whom will honor them, nor are they required to. This is a problem we will all face. Not dealing with it now makes for enormous headaches for those left behind. Your state government should have guidelines on what to do.
Re: the end-of-life discussions here, this is a very useful link to find out about end-of-life options in your state. From their website: "Compassion & Choices is the leading nonprofit organization committed to helping everyone have the best death possible. We offer free counseling, planning resources, referrals and guidance, and across the nation we work to protect and expand options at the end of life. For over thirty years we have reduced people’s suffering and given them some control in their final days – even when injury or illness takes their voice. We are experts in what it takes to die well."
http://www.compassionandchoices.org/what-we-do/advance-planning/advance-directive/
In Mavis Lever Batey’s NYT obituary (see today’s Ledes) I especially enjoyed the last two paragraphs:
In the 2001 movie “Enigma,” Kate Winslet at least partly molded her portrayal of the code breaker Heather Wallace on Mrs. Batey, with whom she had tea before shooting the film. Like Mrs. Batey, the Heather character falls in love with another code breaker and marries him.
Some Bletchley Park veterans criticized the film as inauthentic. Mrs. Batey’s criticism was that its women appeared “scruffy” compared with the originals. As she told another British newspaper, The Daily Record, in 2008, “We borrowed each other’s pearls, so we always looked nice.”
Proof positive there will always be an England.
@James Singer. I'm with you. The way you can tell I'm "dressed up" is that I'm wearing pearls with whatever I happen to have on. Friday I had to go to Naples -- where the swells live -- to conduct some business. I wore a $3 white tee-shirt & definitely-not-designer jeans, but in deference to the swells, I threw on a string of pearls. So -- dressed up.
Marie
@JJG & Marie: I have a British friend that no matter what she has on and it's usually black jeans and black sweater she ALWAYS has on earrings and either her grandmother's pearls or some expensive sterling necklace. One day we went berry picking together in one of the nearby orchards––me with my Danskin tights and hooded sweatshirt and she with pearls and earrings. Only the apples were impressed.
Masterpiece theater had a series about the Bletchley gals some time ago––was very good and informative. I had not known about them which was not surprising since women's roles in almost everything have tended to be thwarted back then–––maybe even now.