This rat bastard was at a town hall meeting here in town over the weekend. Mr. Votus asked him why he would not co-sponsor HR 676, healthcare for all, and he said that health care was an entitlement, not a right.

He sucks to the far corners of the earth, and I will support a good progressive to mop up the floor with him in 2010.

We have an effective vaccine against measles (also covers mumps and rubella, a/k/a German Measles). Measles proper is an incredibly contagious virus, back in the days before the vaccine it would spread through schools like wildfire. The only kids who missed out were those who’d already had the disease. We still see occasional measles outbreaks, but now they’ve moved to our colleges and universities. Because the incidence is so much lower, we are not exposed to the virus annually and our immune system forgets that it needs to look for that thing. Colleges were lax in enforcing immunization requirements, and we had some measles epidemics as a result.

Why are preventive health measures in the monied class’s interest? Because these diseases that inconvenience a child can kill or maim an adult. Think polio. Think measles encephalitis. All of the bad sequelae are much more common in adults than children.

Think sanitation. There are no vaccines against cholera, there is one against typhoid. But you don’t want to be drinking water with S. typhii in it, even if you’re vaccinated. These are both diseases that were commonplace in the 19th century, essentially eradicated in the US, Canada and Europe. Why? Sanitation facilities. Keep clean water and dirty water separate. Treat dirty water before you dump it in the river/ocean/lake. Treat clean water before you put it in the pipes. None of it is cheap, but it does prevent disease.

It’s not just the morally correct thing to do, it’s in their own interest to do it.

might switch over to one of the other hearings today. it’s hearingpalloza day.

When you plan for the people of America, it should include the 20, 50 and 100 year plans. How do you cut down crime and the prison population? You work on the 20 year plan for early education where the focus is to keep the kid in school….. 50 year plans work on the life and worklife to retirement of your population and the 100 year plan deals with the birth to grave quality of life.

Our European neighbors have gotten that with all the benefits that are provided to their citizens. I would like to see America to move to a Social Democracy where we create a strong solid foundation for everyone so that all can fly and do what they desire in life.

I haven’t heard about much of any opposition for Hillary Clinton, frankly. So this may not be too contentious a hearing today. Or for Susan Rice, for that matter. There have been some GOP comments here and there, but nothing that’s reached a substantive debate level that I’ve seen or heard. Anyone know differently on either? Let me know…

only issue i’ve heard is the funding issue for bill clinton’s foundation.

i don’t expect any contentious foreign policy questions though because there aren’t any progressives in the senate to ask them. :(