Tag-Archive for » healthcare «

April 25th, 2010 | Author: sarcozona

Arizona enacted a law this week that makes it a state crime for undocumented immigrants to be in AZ.  It’s basically an excuse for police to fuck with any and all brown people who accidentally leave their driver’s licenses at home.

Did you get flowers for your significant other this Valentine’s Day?  Did you know those flowers were likely grown by heavily exploited child workers in poisonous working conditions on land that should be used to grow food in countries where people routinely starve to death?

Sometimes peer review is just a good way to cheat.

India actually has a reasonable copyright law that will encourage – rather than stifle – innovation.

Mexican abortion law says that a pregnant 10 year old raped by her stepfather must carry the fetus to term.  Oklahoma is only a little better.

Christian health insurance might be worse than Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Academia doesn’t pay nearly as well as most people think it does, but at least we get paid to do something we’re interested in.

April 08th, 2010 | Author: sarcozona

Many Republicans, Tea Partiers, and others on the right think the passage of health care reform is THE END OF THE WORLD (and they’re bringing their guns). Despite the lack of republican support for the bill, however, it’s built with conservative ideals.  For example, it includes $250 million for abstinence only sex education (How many times does the ineffectiveness of abstinence only sex ed need to be shown before we stop throwing money away?)  The bill is also pretty darn good for insurance companies and only a little good for people who actually need insurance.  Here’s a list of just a few ways insurance companies can still screw you over.

I hope the Democrats give up on this ridiculous idea of bipartisanship soon – all it leads to is the Republicans getting what they want while the Democrats take the flak for their bad ideas.

April 03rd, 2010 | Author: sarcozona

The rapists who don’t get caught are smart, misogynist predators, not confused young men. (via Michael Alan Miller)

Teaching teenagers about healthy relationships reduces teen pregnancy. (via OPT) Unfortunately, about the only people who get a decent sex education in the US grow up on a farm.

Thamnolia vermicularis

Thamnolia vermicularis (whiteworm lichen) on Botany Photo of the Day

Obama gives the go-ahead for offshore drilling, reneging on his campaign promise in a bid to get the Republicans to vote for climate change legislation. First of all, a potential three years of oil is NOT worth that much environmental damage.  But perhaps more importantly, shouldn’t you wait until you’ve got the votes to hand over the prize?

The Jews were never slaves in Egypt (and they were probably Canaanites to boot).  But Happy Passover anyway!

The crazies on the right think returning your census form is like the jackets from the V‘s Peace Ambassadors, but still stop efforts to model the population instead.

Ovulation

Girls are outperforming boys in school and some white guys think we should change the system because of it.  Lindsay Beyerstein has a spot on analysis of the situation: “Maybe boys are acting out and underperforming because they’ve been taught from an early age that the world should change to suit them.”

A fantastic series of lectures from a Berkeley Biological Anthropology course taught by Terrence Deacon is available online (you can also get it through iTunesU).  I’ve been listening to it on my walk to school in the mornings.

From a beautiful series by Sophia Wallace

People we “rescued” from Haiti are currently prisoners of our royally fucked immigration system because of a paperwork problem.

I’m not going to have kids and I’m happy about it. Are you?

Five ways the world didn’t end when the Large Hadron Collider turned on.

Gay marriage in the British Cavalry. Romantic!

March 27th, 2010 | Author: sarcozona

Women in Afghanistan are setting themselves on fire in astonishing numbers.  Getting child marriage banned must be higher on our list of priorities.

Think you’re not going to get into grad school this year?  Toaster Sunshine has some words of wisdom for you.

I would like this bookshelf in my house

A review of acupuncture’s effect on heart rate variability. Conclusion: bullshit.

On comparing Obama to Napoleon.

Why I always wore my best underwear to ochem lab.

I’m glad Google has finally left China. I think more companies that work in China should recognize the human rights abuses they help perpetuate.

In defense of scientists.

Nancy Pelosi gets a lot of flack from the right and the left, but I think she’s actually pretty awesome.

What would a real Christian America look like? (Probably not an America that kicks its homeless & mentally ill in the face.)

Despite a court order and reams of scientific evidence, the FDA refuses to do its job.

Where we are with migraine research: still at something happens and the brainstem (or the CNS) doesn’t like it, but we have some new drug targets.

Early women scientists were awesome, but they sure had to put up with a lot.  This description of Wanda G. Bradshaw says a lot about the times – she isn’t even allowed interests separate from her husband.

The MSM contributed too much to the misinformation about health care reform by misrepresenting poll results.

Including transportation costs would go a long way towards realistically representing housing affordability: 69% of communities are considered affordable using the standard measure of 30% of income, but only 39% are affordable (less than 45% of income) if housing and transportation costs are considered.

High fructose corn syrup makes you gain more weight than a calorically equivalent amount of table sugar.  When are we going to stop subsidizing corn so much?

Zoos aren't just for fun & education: they're absolutely essential for conservation (and unbelievably cute pictures of baby animals).

February 23rd, 2010 | Author: sarcozona

Over the last year, the frequency of my migraines has increased. Then last week, I had a new and frightening kind of aura.  If I were seeing a neurologist, those two statements would be certain to worry her, and she’d likely demand all kinds of fancy brain scans.

Unfortunately, I can’t afford health insurance. While I have plenty to pay my bills (I’ve even got enough saved for almost a year’s rent!), there is simply no way I could afford being treated by a neurologist.  So, like the many other Americans without health insurance, I’ve just got to hope it’s nothing serious and that by some miracle our government gets some real health reform passed – soon.

December 29th, 2009 | Author: sarcozona

Father most certainly does NOT know best.

Some men go to strip clubs at least in part because they don’t know how to tell their guy friends they like them.

The link above explains that women are glue.  This also suggests that women most certainly aren’t people.

Jimmy Carter publicly denounces Southern Baptists because of their misogyny.

Who’s lying about climate change?

Money is the only good reason to get married.

Conservatives haven’t changed much at all since the New Deal.

December 20th, 2009 | Author: sarcozona

More evidence that our drug policies are just wrong.

Evolving to eat meat helped humans live longer.

American evangelical influence is likely to cause Ugandan gays to be executed.

How did health care reform turn into a subsidy for health insurance companies?

It makes me livid when good ideas get shut down because politicians are more interested in support from corporations than their constituents.  Pharmaceutical companies freaking out about having to become more competitive are how we lost one great cost-saver in the health care bill this week.

HIV is a tricky bastard. A promising microbicide failed to work in large scale trials.

If we found other intelligent life, would we be able to communicate in any meaningful way? I recommend we start trying with octopuses.

A great story demonstrating that the pay gap is alive and well, sexism still has large effects in women’s lives, and that women are just as qualified as men.

I made these pancakes, but with whole wheat flour and extra buttermilk.  They will make any day better.  I promise.

Sexism makes you worse at math.

Bill Smith, untitle (calibreted arterial system), detail, 2006, mixed media

Bill Smith, untitle (calibreted arterial system), detail, 2006, mixed media

You aren’t funny, you’re an ass.

Dear Obama, please stop being such a failure.

October 24th, 2009 | Author: sarcozona

Lights on how the Christian community accepts rapists and vilifies their victims.

Green spaces make you healthier. I wonder if houseplants help.

Banning abortion doesn’t make it rarer, but it does make it more dangerous: unsafe abortions kill 70,000 women a year.  A lack of access to contraceptives leads to 60 million unintended pregnancies a year and increases abortion rates, often in unsafe conditions. If Christians really wanted to save lives, they’d be mailing condoms instead of gospel tracts.

Homeless people deserve better.  I hope that so many people losing their homes will lead to improved services for the homeless.

Proposed budget cuts in AZ target the poor and include wonderfully ironic cuts like “eliminating state supervision of loan originators, mortgage brokers and money transmitters.” Hawaii is dramatically shortening the school year because of budget cuts.

US drug policy blocks successful treatments for cluster headaches.

The difference between fields with lots of women and fields with few is other women.

Interpol hooked up with UN Peacekeeping.

Churches in Nigeria are torturing and killing children.  Isn’t God great?

So many of the same people who think blowing up all the Muslims is a great idea are also strongly anti-immigrant.  I guess they don’t realize how many immigrants are dying for their beliefs. Or they’re just racist.

The worst companies in the world.  Just in case you thought corporations were generally looking out for your best interests.

WWJD?

WWJD?

One week without health insurance was enough for this family to be denied real coverage for their daughter.

Wearing a bra is an evil deception deserving extreme punishment.

Garlic might actually help prevent colds, but the AIDS vaccine probably didn’t really work.

Companies with more women are better companies.

Thomas Hillier - The Emperor's Castle

Thomas Hillier - The Emperor's Castle

The Pansy Project: “Artist Paul Harfleet revisits city streets planting pansies at the site of homophobic abuse. Each location is photographed and named after the abuse received.”

If I go nuts, this is why.

October 03rd, 2009 | Author: sarcozona

It’s more expensive to be gay.

The Straight Girl’s Guide to Sleeping with Chicks.  I’m beginning to think straight women don’t actually exist.

Mac vs. PC hilarity.

Another health insurance company screws over another sick person.

Frat boys that aren’t awful human beings.  Hooray feminism!

cute attack: baby pygmy hippo

cute attack: baby pygmy hippo

Nike resigned from the board of the Chamber of Commerce in protest of the chamber’s position on climate change.  Other companies flat out resigned their memberships.  It’s good to see companies recognizing climate change is going to start affecting their profits.

I feel like the appropriate punishment for these sorts of crimes would be to deny them modern medical care.

Second wave feminism has a bad reputation, but without it, women would still be writing songs like this:

Every native fish in AZ is in trouble, and several have already gone extinct.  Drastic times call for drastic measures.

A new spider species was recently discovered and named after David Bowie.

Heteropoda davidbowie

Heteropoda davidbowie

Warming can fundamentally change interactions in an ecosystem.  This means that many of our predictions about what’s going to happen to ecosystems with climate change could be very, very wrong.

The Finance Committee killed the public option this week and then approved money for abstinence only sex-ed, which is the proven best way to up teen pregnancy and std rates.  I’d like to point out that democrats Lincoln, Conrad, and Baucus voted down the public option.  I suggest letting them know how you feel about their vote, especially if you come from Arkansas, Montana, or North Dakota.

Laurent is finally blogging again – I adore his silly botany posts.  Here’s a great one about how purple toothwort protects its nectar.

September 24th, 2009 | Author: sarcozona

Today I spent $250 on a 4 month supply of birth control.  That’s $750 a year.  Before the pharmacy at my school closed because of budget cuts, it was $540 a year.  Unfortunately, I can’t find a prescription discount card that covers my pills.

Despite the outrageous cost (you’d think the pills with less hormone in them would be cheaper.  They aren’t.) it’s worth the money – without the pills I spent a week every month feeling like I’m in labor.

But I wish I could have spent that money on these instead:

Jarvis by Jessica Bennet

Jarvis by Jessica Bennet

and these:

Kicky by Chinese Laundry

Kicky by Chinese Laundry