Health Care for All

If you haven't seen the PBS program called Critical Condition, it is definitely a must see.

They provided a statistic in the film that all people who do have health insurance are paying nearly $1,000 a year more in costs due to the lack of medical insurance for all. Doesn't a national plan make sense, considering this?

Check out the program Critical Condition.

That's Just Not Neighborly!

It strikes me that we now have a layer of government and law enforcement in our lives that is taking away our need to be neighborly - it's called a homeowner's association.

Case in point: my dead barking dog.

Yup, my dog is dead. And yup, somebody complained that it barks too much.

Did anyone ask me if I still had a dog? Nope. That's because we don't really live in a "neighborhood." We live in a system of rows of houses where people don't talk to one another. No longer do people have to just walk over to my house and ask "was that your dead dog barking last night?"

So the People Pusher wants to know... why do we want homeowner's associations? I'm starting to think that pink houses are a great idea. Since the reason we have homeowner's associations is supposedly to keep the neighbor from painting their house pink, I am really starting to like pink houses. As John Mellencamp said, "little pink houses, for you and me!"

But seriously - I'd like the idea of a "neighborhood" to come back.

Amendment 51 Colorado: Helping People Who Need it Most

Amendment 51 provides thousands of children and adults with Autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, and Mental Retardation and other conditions with critically needed care, through a modest, phased-in sales tax of 2/10 of 1%. It is expected to raise enough funding to end decades-long waiting lists for important services for people with developmental disabilities in Colorado.

Prior to going to the voters to support this increase to end the waiting list in Colorado, advocates and parents of people with developmental disabilities worked last summer with the Colorado legislature to try to find ways to end the waiting list. While some funding was designated, the amount needed to fully end the wait list far exceeded what was allocated.

To be somewhat cliche, there never really is a "perfect time" to bite the bullet to provide the financial support necessary to ensure that people with developmental disabilities have their needs met. Sometimes, taxation is necessary to solve major problems. This amendment is only asking for .02 cents on every $10.

People with developmental disabilities are not a "special interest group." They are wonderful people who have so much to contribute to the community. The community also loses the tremendous skills and talents of the parents of these individuals when their needs are not met because parents must stop working in their careers or even have to move to other states where they can get services. Their struggles "trickle out" to the community. In other words, everyone is impacted.

There are times like these when people are worried and don't want to support a social cause. What I hope readers will realize is that one day, it could be you or your family who has this need. If that should happen, I'm certain it will be government support you will turn to for help because frankly, there is no other way unless you are wealthy.

The People Pusher asks you to Vote Yes on 51.