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Health care, Japanese earthquake, Libya, medicine, news, nuclear power, pharmaceutical companies, psychology, Qaddafi, sociology, unions, Wisconsin
It occurred to me today. Well, it occurs to me often, but today I decided to mention it. Given the speed of information whirling around the globe as fast as light, it’s no wonder.
Given our attention spans being shorter than the nose on a gnat, it’s no wonder.
Today’s news is piled upon the trash pile, often to be utterly forgotten except by a very few.
Today, the news is dominated by the tragedy in Japan. Well it should be, for what has happened there is truly devastating to all of us. We sympathize with the pain and wreckage that consumes a nation.
We are slowly forgetting about Libya and the utterly inhuman slaughter than is beginning there as Qaddafi looses his mercenary forces with appalling determination to exterminate those who had the temerity to ask him to stop using them as his private empire of greed.
We are still sympathetic to Wisconsin, but after all, it’s got to take second place to the deaths of thousands, whether through natural disaster or human evil.
We have pretty much forgotten Haiti, except to nod in sadness when some celebrity needs to shore up their public persona by making a trip there to “help out.”
To say nothing less than other notables for a day or a few. Who remembers the name of the latest Medal of Honor recipient from Iowa? Or the wrestler from Iowa who forfeited his match rather than wrestle a girl?
We know that parts of the East Coast are facing or living with flooding, but really, isn’t that just part of life in America every year some place?
We don’t know what is going on in Egypt today, even though a couple of weeks ago, we knew in a nuanced way, all the players.
Who knows what is happening in Iraq? We’ve officially ended that war, even though we are still there, doing something or other. Marches occurred there. Is there a government in place? I can’t remember. We crossed it off our list.
I wonder what it feels like to be the center of attention nationally or world-wide? And then, suddenly the phone no longer rings, there are no reporters at the door. No Hollywood promoter interested in doing a movie, no publicist interested in “talking about a book.”
I wonder what it feels like to return to obscurity. I know what it’s like to be obscure. Most of us do. Most of us have always been so, except to a few friends, coworkers, and family. But to be “somebody” for a minute, and then poof, back to obscure? That must be a tough thing to get through.
What’s it like to be recognized wherever you go? To the supermarket, “hey aren’t you the _________?” Until one day, someone says, “hey. . .” and you turn in expectation, smile ready, “yes I’m. . .” and then you hear “hey bud, you dropped your glove.” No sign on his face that he knows you from Adam.
Just wondering what that feels like.
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It appears that sentiments are growing for the institution of a “no fly zone” over Libya. The Arab League has voted in favor of it. I think perhaps all agree that Qaddafi is so insane that he will kill all the rebels. The atrocities are starting to mount up. Something must be done, but what? I surely have no answers.
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I’ve been hearing in various places that the union busting efforts in Wisconsin, may have unintended consequences for the extreme right-wing exemplified by Gov. Walker and his troupe of big business supporters. Unions may in fact have a resurgence across the land as people stand up in solidarity in favor of collective bargaining as the champion of workers rights and protector of Americans in labor.
A huge rally is scheduled for Madison today. We hope that it numbers in the hundreds of thousands. This will be rectified.Of that one can be quite certain.
Lest there be any doubt that the move in Wisconsin was solely to hurt the Democratic Party, here’s the Repuklican Senate Majority Leader in his own words:
If we win this battle, and the money is not there under the auspices of the unions, certainly what you’re going to find is President Obama is going to have a much more difficult time getting elected and winning the state of Wisconsin.
We hope with all our being that these bastards are voted out, recalled, or impeached as the case may be. To use the law to effect political advantage and to do it so openly, callously, and against the welfare of the people of your state is stunningly reprehensible.
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Our good bloggy friend, Distributor Cap has a good post on nuclear energy in the wake of the Japanese earthquake. While they insist that there is no real danger, one reactor has blown up, and fears are that the Japanese may be downplaying the danger. This is to be expected of course, but gives every one of us pause. While nuclear power is seemingly necessary, its dangers cannot be lightly dismissed either.
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The wacko right who are not politicians, and thus not sucking off the teat of big business, has been well taught to mouth the mantra of “free market” economics and “trickle down” theories. They are taught to recite ad nauseam that if only business is happy then all of working stiffs will get our fair share. Shall we just mark this up as another example of corporate largess then?
KV Pharmaceuticals of St. Louis has been given FDA exclusive rights to sell a drug called Makena, a drug that prevents premature childbirth. The drug is cheap to manufacture and has been priced at $10 a shot. KV has raised the price to $1500 per dose. Their explanation? Women will be willing to pay the increased amount to avoid complications to their newborns, such as mental and physical disabilities.
Yes, that is their explanation. Because the results of not taking it could be catastrophic, women will pay the extra monies. No word yet as to what poor women are supposed to do.
Are you sick to your stomach now? Can’t wait to hear the spin the “kill Obamacare” crowd will put on this.
Related Articles
- Qaddafi’s Firepower Puts Libyan Rebels on the Defensive (businessweek.com)
- Qaddafi Forces Blast Oil Port to Force Out Rebels (foxnews.com)
- Michael Moore on Wisconsin’s Union-Busting: Is This War? (blogher.com)
Existential Ennui 
To take a life-saving, defect-preventing drug and sell it for $1500 a pop — solely to profit off the desperation of pregnant women — is evil, pure and simple. I’m disgusted.
Regarding the nuclear problems in Japan right now, the fact that this is occuring close to the anniversary of the Three Mile Island incident is ominous.
Yes Ahab, and the nutzo right continues to believe that the business community will act out of goodness, if only given a chance to “make a fair profit.” Bull!
The piling up of bad, or good, news hiding yesterday’s news is a personal choice. I am worried about our democracy, The Republicans are attacking the middle class in a shock and awe style. The media plays along and Obama is mute. I am scared enough to make any other news secondary.
We shouldn’t allow big Pharma to dictate prices. Our sham health care reform left that and almost everything else the same. It’s another attack on the non rich.
Personally, I am against no fly imposed by the US. With a president that is comfortable with two massive wars and agrees with the right almost axiomatically, the next stop will be American poor kids’ feet on the Libyan ground. (Only Bill Clinton did it well in Iraq and air war in Bosnia.)
Well, I don’t think we can afford to ignore the rest of the world, even in our own troubles.
I agree with you that the GOP is making a concerted effort to destroy the Democratic party and thus the middle and working class, making us simple slaves of the rich. Back to the time of sweatshops and child labor. There is nothing they won’t do it seems to be able to buy the 10th and 11th houses for themselves.
It seems the no-fly zone is multi-national, the Arab League endorsed it.
it seems as if nothing can shock me anymore. bet these people who will defend the ‘free market’s” choice to sell their drug for as high of a price as they can get away with are also prolifers who will crucify you for not carrying every pregnancy to term regardless of the circumstances to the health of the mother. they don’t really care about babies or life, or the mother–they only care about their profits and having more foot soldiers for wars of aggression.
You are so right Libs…they act with utter inconsistency on these matters all the time. Cuts in womens and childrens programs by the GOP House suggests that they don’t really care abouty life issues much at all, except as they can rile up the bible thumpers.
Haiti is not forgotten to many in the Episcopal Church because of “companion diocese” relationships – and ongoing reporting in ENS. I just attendd the UNCSW where there were a number of NGO workshops about Haiti, including one at the Episcopal Church Center.
Egypt is under ongoing scrutiny because the conversations taking place about rebuilding and restructuring DO NOT INCLUDE A SINGLE WOMAN. And, the women in Egypt are protesting this, as they should.
I suspect that the backfire from the egregious actions of the Governator in WI will have widespread ramifications for republicans….don’t mess with unions. That said, unions would be wise to be more gracious in their demands and consider others now and then and not just their own self-interests…n other words bargain fairly.
I am terribly saddened about Japan….and a tragedy that continues to worsen.
Terri, it seems we are all pushed and pulled in so many directions, but it is a tragedy in Haiti, with most of the nations who pledged monies renigging on their pledges. I can believe that Japan will be rebuilt much more quickly, while Haiti will remain as is for decades to come.
I too believe that the GOP will reap the whirlwind for their assault against labor. And I agree, labor needs to see their role as much broader in the future–they have serious power that should be wielded for the common good of all America.
Sherry:
This post is thought provoking and, of course, true (mores the pity.) It is the function of us as bloggers to keep a focus on things the news gets bored with or puts under covers to show the most recent tragic event.
Hopefully we will divide the items among us and keep our attention to the things we need to keep. For instance, if we don’t keep a focus on Wisconsin for the next 10 months it will be much harder to get Scott Walker in a recall situation… if we don’t continue to monitor and state our opinions on Libya we might have a third mid-east war to spend our unfunded capital and the lives of our next generation of leaders in…and if we don’t continue to expose the greed and corruption of Corporations in the post-Citizens-United world the Middle Class stands no chance of remaining in existence.
Thanks for your good work and keep it up. I am adding you to my “reform” blogroll, which I value higher than most sites.
Regards, Bill Tchakirides
http://underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com
Thanks Bill, and I think you are so right. We have our pet projects, each of us, and we need to keep reminding people of these situations so action can be taken. This is especially true of Wisconsin, where the biggest fight remains…recalling the Gov and the GOP who attempted this political ploy for power. I’ll be by and take and take a look at your site….No doubt we are fellow travelers.
Whether you live in New York or you a are member of an yet to be discovered tribe deep in the Amazon, your humanity is reflected by your behavior. Whether we show sadness at 10,000 dead or we care more about other issues makes absolutely no difference to the tragedy in Japan or to our values.
Both Iraq and Afghanistan started as multinational efforts. At this time we have to retreat and reassess when we really want to intervene rather than the current policy that is basically the Wild West all over again.
Really? Interesting opinion.
Please don’t assume that the flitting-about of the MSM reflects the interests — or attention span — of everybody. Most liberal blogs I read are4 still wall-to-wall Wisconsin — they haven’t forgotten about it at all. I’m still closely following events in the Middle East, and not only Libya. Who cares if the American MSM have forgotten about it when I can get in-depth coverage on al-Jazeera, without the distraction of endless pseudo-news about celebrities and sports. The MSM is for people who really care more about what Lindsey Lohan is doing or about who won some football game than about what’s going on in Misrâtah or Madison.
It appears that sentiments are growing for the institution of a “no fly zone” over Libya. The Arab League has voted in favor of it. I think perhaps all agree that Qaddafi is so insane that he will kill all the rebels. The atrocities are starting to mount up. Something must be done, but what? I surely have no answers.
The rebels are screaming for outside help, and the rebel provisional government in Benghazi has asked Britain and France for air-strikes. They’re the ones who are in the best position to know what they need. If the real representatives of the Libyan people endorse intervention, and the Arab League does so as well, how much more legitimacy do we need for such a move?
I agree, that many do continue to stay up on what is going on in troubled areas even when the MSM has moved on. But frankly, I’m not sure that that is true of most. We bloggers are reading so much around the Internet every day, that we don’t realize that we don’t really reflect most of America….at least I don’t think we do. Otherwise why the appalling lack of knowledge most American’s exhibit when questioned?
I agree, an international movement must step in in Libya now. This is becoming a bloodbath. Certainly we have to eliminate their airforce and perhaps their naval capability. The slaughter cannot continue.
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