Day: July 26, 2017

enoughtohold:

it’s interesting learning which homophobic ideas are confusing and unfamiliar to the next generation. for example, every once in a while i’ll see a post going around expressing tittering surprise at someone’s claim that gay men have hundreds of sexual partners in their lifetimes. while these posts often have a snappy comeback attached, they send a shiver down my spine because i remember when those claims were common, when you’d see them on the news or read them in your study bible. and they were deployed with a specific purpose — to convince you not just that gay men were disgusting and pathological, but that they deserved to die from AIDS. i saw another post laughing at the outlandish idea that gay men eroticize and worship death, but that too was a standard line, part and parcel of this propaganda with the goal of dehumanizing gay men as they died by the thousands with little intervention from mainstream society.

which is not to say that not knowing this is your fault, or that i don’t understand. i’ll never forget sitting in a classroom with my high school gsa, all five of us, watching a documentary on depictions of gay and bi people in media (off the straight and narrow [pdf transcript] — a worthwhile watch if your school library has it) when the narrator mentioned “the stereotype of the gay psycho killer.” we burst into giggles — how ridiculous! — then turned to our gay faculty advisors and saw their pale, pained faces as they told us “no, really. that was real” and we realized that what we’d been laughing at was the stuff of their lives.

it’s moving and inspiring to see a new generation of kids growing up without encountering these ideas. it’s a good thing. but at the same time, we have to pass on the knowledge of this pain, so we’re not caught unawares when those who hate us come back with the oldest tricks in the book.

What today’s healthcare vote means. (July 25, 2017)

justsomeantifas:

What Exactly Passed?

Today the Senate Republicans voted 51- 50 to start THE DEBATE on the Obamacare repeal. Here’s what the means, and pay attention because it gets a little confusing:

This motion passing means that the entire Senate will now go through 20 hours of debating today and the next day or two. After the 20 hours of debating the senators will then propose amendments to the House bill. THREE bills will looked at and then they will decide which to do a final vote on, or they might vote to move all three forward. So there are three very different ways the Affordable Care Act Obamacare can be repealed or altered. Which are:

  • A FULL repeal of Obamacare’s spending and health insurance coverage expansion with NO replacement. This is known as the Obamacare Repeal Reconciliation Act, it need 51 votes and has very little chance of passing.
  • A repeal AND replace plan that Republican senators have been working on for months. This is known as the Better Care Reconciliation Act, and reconciliations have different rules so this will require 60 votes to pass. 
  • The final one is known as the “skinny repeal,” and this will get rid of the individual mandate, a few of the more unpopular provisions of Obamacare, and do very little else.

If their choice bill(s) gets enough votes then it will be introduced in the Senate with all the amendments they might chose to make and they will vote to replace the House bill with whatever they decide. It’s possible that nothing could even make it to this point but if something does then it’s also possible that it never moves past this point. If they fail to get the 51 votes required here then it’s dead, if it gets enough it will go for a final vote in the House where they will need at least 218 votes. Then it will finally go to Trump who will sign anything that repeals or partially repeals Obamacare. So there are still a lot of steps that have to happen before anything changes. 

How Many Could Lose Coverage?

Each bill has it’s own projections, but these could change depending on the alterations done over the next few days. However right now:

  • The Obamacare Repeal Reconciliation Act – The CBO projects 32 million people would lose coverage.
  • The Better Care Reconciliation Act – The CBO projects 22 million people would lose coverage.
  • The Skinny Bill – This will work much differently than the other two. Removing the mandate and discouraging healthy individuals from buying insurance in the marketplace could result in higher premiums and force millions out. The estimate from the CBO is 15 million, however this could change if the lawmakers alter the legislation to keep this from happening. 

Who Voted For What?

As reported yesterday, John McCain flew back to the Senate despite having surgery and being diagnosed with cancer. While there he made a speech where he denounced the health bill. He criticised the way the republicans have crafted the bill, said he would not support the current version, and called for bipartisanship. McCain expressed his apparent hatred of the bill and then gave the vote to move it forward. The Senate needed 50 votes and got it with McCain, Mike Pence then used his power as Vice President to break the tie. 

The only republicans who did not vote to move forward were Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski. No democrats backed the motion. 

What Do You Look Out For Now?

There will be lots of suggestions and debates on healthcare over these next 20 Senate hours. Keep an eye out on what is changing about each of the three bills and which one looks like it will go forward. Even if one does go through, there are still many steps that need to happen so keep an eye out. 

greek-museums:

Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki:

Glass birds from tombs of the Roman period.

This is one of the cards I got from the museum, unfortunatelly it was an old print so it doesn’t specify who the photographer is- more recent prints do mention the photographer. I have posted a photograph of them here too. They are definitely the most beautiful glass objects the museum has on display.

Source: greek-museums