This morning Democracy Now had the segment with Cory Booker, from the
earlier "debate".
I must say that he presents himself very well, and might even sway me
with his argument for new nuclear facilities. I would still want to
see his foreign policies, but I certainly see him as above Joe and
Elizabeth.
Carl Jarvis
On 11/13/19, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I've encountered some folks in the blindness field, executive directors of
agencies and department heads, as well as some other professionals, a
psychiatrist at the clinic where I worked, a teacher, who I think had
similar personality characteristics to the ones you identified in the
wealthy businessmen you've known. Perhaps the personality characteristics
get the people to the positions they end up holding. The extremely rich are,
I suspect, a whole other thing. I met a few when I was doing the adoption
homestudies: a guy who was the CEO of Time or Life or maybe it was Time/Life
Corporation, the person whom I once described, Mort Zuckerman, head of a
huge communications empire, and another one who was some sort of
billionaire, and a hedge fund guy who had purchased a yacht to take a round
the world tour and then found out that he had, wat the doctors thought was a
terminal case of intestinal cancer, but then recovered. They were different
from each other in a lot of ways, but they were all completely detached from
the world of regular people. They lived in a world made up of people like
themselves. Everyone else were just furniture in their world, servants whom
they could pay to fill their needs. I remember that the yacht owner and his
wife adopted two children, consecutively from Russia through a very fine
small adoption agency. Over the years, I'd become friendly with the owner of
that agency. The agency was always at risk financially and when things
became really desperate, they'd reach out to their wealthiest former clients
and ask for help. People appreciated the good service they'd received and
they were grateful to have been able to adopt their children so they usually
donated what they could. But not this guy. He was worth billions, but he
never donated a cent.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Wednesday, November 13, 2019 3:42 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Well Miriam,
The one thing I have control over, for certain, is my values. But because I
am a long way from having perfect judgement, those values do tend to change
with the inclusion of new information and new experiences. But, after many
years, I've managed to accept the fact that there are things beyond my
control. I used to rail against them, believing that I could change the
unchangeable. Now I merely acknowledge that they are there. I just do not
give in to the many temptations that others seem to be drawn toward. I
suspect that part of it is due to the care that my parents gave to making
certain that my sisters and I grew up with caring and compassion.
Over my lifetime I've had the occasion to be around a vast number of
businessmen, small businessmen, corporate presidents, private entrepreneurs,
and a very few idly rich. A majority have some basic things in common. Of
course these impressions are from my 20's and early 30's(1955-1965).
Self serving...today I call it Libertarian ism, some greed, disdain for the
working folks, false camaraderie, ability to take advantage of others
without any twinges of conscience, and an inflated ego that needs constant
stroking by subordinates.
Golly, I do believe that I just identified Donald Trump!
Carl Jarvis
On 11/13/19, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Carl,
It's all very depressing. There are so many individual needs in the
older blind population and there's no way that the needs can be fully
met by a society that sees older folks as a useless burden, whom it
would be most efficient to segregate somewhere and then arrange for
minimal care by the marginal members of our society. When that is the
model for the elderly, how much thought and money will be allocated to
the needs of blind people, who, after all, are undervalued by our society
when they are young and healthy.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Wednesday, November 13, 2019 12:48 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Miriam,
For the past 25 plus years Cathy and I have operated as private
contractors under the name, Peninsula Rehabilitation Services. The
state-wide program is called, The Independent Living Older Blind Program.
Initially,around 1988, the US Department of Education put up money for
states to write Grants to be included. Washington State Department of
Services for the Blind(DSB)was successful in obtaining grant money
every year until the Grant was turned into funding for all 50 states.
At first the field rehab teachers were in-house. DSB had 8 field
rehab teachers already in place, serving the VRC's with initial skills
training for the Vocational Rehab Program. So they were now being
given the additional task of serving the Non VR clients. But one by
one these field positions were filled by O&M Specialists who also were
expected to double as rehab teachers for all clients. The
requirements for O&M's in Washington requires "normal" vision. Plus
the fact that there was no money for drivers for any blind RT's, and the
territories were huge.
In 1995 DSB was faced with a problem. They had the Federal dollars,
but no longer had Full Time Equivalents(FTE's)and the state
legislature rejected the request for additional positions. So DSB
offered the money to private contractors. The ILOB Program developed
over several years, growing in more and more paperwork, as government
programs are wont to do. At some point around 2005, the state's IL
manager took a position with the University of Washington, leaving a
position which could not be filled due to a freeze on hiring. DSB
decided to simply allow the ILOB Program to follow the program manager
to the U of W, and so a financial arrangement was arrived at. But
regardless of who administers this program, it is woefully under
funded and poorly managed. And yet, we, PRS, are a contact point for
newly blinded Seniors. We do group training when possible, and we do
provide some basic tools such as handheld magnifiers, talking watches,
etc. We also do outreach, and put out packets of information regarding
the large number of hidden services which do exist.
From the beginning Cathy and I agreed that our mission was to serve
the needs of clients, and not to build an institution. We could
either meet with clients or meet with potential funders, write grants
or provide folks with one on one training. We stayed small, but
probably more effective than if we'd gone the route of three
contractors that developed agencies. The biggest and oldest of these,
located in Seattle, just closed their doors after 50 years. The
Lilac Blind Foundation, which I co founded in Spokane, back in 1971,
served the Inland Empire with as many as 15 employees. They are now
struggling to support 3 or 4 staff. When we began back in 1995, we
were serving the entire four counties that made up the Olympic
Peninsula, as well as Kitsap county, a very large county lying between
Hood Canal and Puget Sound. We would schedule four or five clients
each day, doing our reports in the evenings. Saturdays were often days we
met with support groups, or did presentations.
Today I wonder how we ever did it! We serve only two counties and see
clients only three days in the week. We do our ever increasing
paperwork on Mondays and Fridays, along with our scheduling and ordering.
The area we serve is still a vast one, but the population is only
around 150 thousand. But even so, Sequim is the state's favorite
retirement town, and Port Angeles is not far behind. Lots of older
folks.
Carl Jarvis
On 11/12/19, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
So you're individual private contractors?
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Frank Ventura
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 5:57 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Oh forgot to answer your question as to if my union has put pressure
on the state government. As my managers like to say on a regular
basis, if anyone goes to the union or the union goes to anyone, we'll
outsource every goddamn one of you; and they most certainly would too.
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Miriam Vieni
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 5:34 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Is that all you get now? Is that true of all state employees in your
state?
Did they make any efforts to organize and put pressure on the state
government to change that? It sounds terrible.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Frank Ventura
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 5:11 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Miriam, that is true and it would have worked if the states did not
eliminate the state pensions for some employees. To break it down to
a very simple notion the law was meant to allow public employees to
get either a pension or social security of both. Once the law went
into being and public employees lost their social security some
states took away the pensions and left employees with neither SS or a
pension. Now if you think deferred compensation is any substitute you
really need to do some more research, you only get back about 70
percent of what you put in.
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Miriam Vieni
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 3:12 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
I looked further on the web and from what I can tell, the law is
supposed to protect people who worked for a system which did not do
the usual tax withholding from their pay checks for social security.
It is supposed to ensure that they receive income approximately
equivalent to what they would have gotten from social security.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Frank Ventura
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 1:29 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Hi Miriam, in the days after 9-11, the Bush administration amended
the social security law by inserting what is known as the "windfall
elimination provision", which allows states to take the amount of a
social security benefit out of a retirees pension or deferred
compensation effectively preventing them from collecting social
security. For example if an employee retires and gets $2000 from
their deferred comensation and $1000 from social security their
deferred compensation will be reduced to $1000. See the link below my
signature. To the best of my knowledge only 6 sates do this to their
employees with Massachusetts being one. Sadly, my senator, Ms. Warren
refuses to take a stand against this provision.
As far as Obama, I found many youtube clips of his debates but I
found noting where he said that he will eliminate or reduce social
security.
Can you provide a link? If he did say that it certainly will be
everywhere on the internet.
Frank
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/05/new-bill-would-change-social-security
-
rule-on-public-workers-benefits.html
P
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Miriam Vieni
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 9:38 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Well Frank,
It depends on what you mean by far left. I don't understand about
your state, how it could prevent you from receiving social security.
I'll have to google that. But I do remember hearing Obama, in a
presidential debate with Romney, talk about how it would be a good
idea to privatize social security or lower its benefits or some such
thing. And now that I'm reading the book, We've Got People by Ryan
Grinn, which is a detailed history of the Democratic Party since
Jesse Jackson's run, my memory of Obama being willing to reduce our
social security has been verified. So if you think that the
Democratic leadership is left wing, you've been fooled like a lot of
us were. The Clinton wing of the Democratic party is corporatist and
cares only to stay in power. There's an industry of consultants who
stay in business because the party insists that moninees raise a
certain amount of money in order to be supported in elections by the
party.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Frank Ventura
Sent: Tuesday, November 12, 2019 2:29 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Miriam, yours is just one of the many experiences that make me think
we have already lost the battle. I used to have a stack of my late
mother's medical bills on my desk at home. I have since put them in a
file box and hid them under my desk as I can't stand to see them.
About half of my take home pay goes to those bills and will most
likely do so until I die. Thankfully I don't have children so the
cycle of inherited debt will stop. Carl spoke about how he fears that
his pension and social security will be protected.
That is a generational thing as my generation is already living in a
world where those things don't exist. Even here in my allegedly
progressive state, my union has lost access to the state pension
system. Instead we have it replaced by (nudge, wink) "deferred
compensation" which is nothing more than a zero interest savings
account where I am forced to contribute 15 percent of my paycheck to
every pay period and then when I retire I get to cash it in minus the
almost 30 percent of cumulative back end charges and fees. Now about
that social security? As a state employee I am not allowed to collect
social security when I retire. Sure we pay into it but remember that
piece of paper we signed when we took the job? Yes sir that "windfall
elimination plan" law really sticks it to me as it does in the other
5 states in the country that require state employees to sign away
their social security. I feel defeated and don't have any positive
view of the future despite how many far left podcasts I listen to as
they too are part of the corporate demigods that got us where we are.
Frank
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Miriam Vieni
Sent: Monday, November 11, 2019 9:25 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
Amy was trying to ask, what she thought was a provocative and
meaningful question, and Warren was trying to dodge it. But really, I
don't see the point of the question. I've noticed that she often does
something similar, asks public figures to comment on outrageous
things that other people have said. Trying to get someone to say
something in an unguarded moment is not, as far as I'm concerned,
doing useful journalism.
As for your personal concern, I surely do understand that. As I've
explained, my income slowly decreases as municipal bonds are called
and replaced with bonds that pay a lower rate of interest. My
expenses rise, supplemental medical insurance, Medicare Prescription
insurance, and other expenses. As my physical capacities decline,
and I'm not sure how long I'll be able to walk, I'm going to have to
have a different level of care. And that's another issue. I can be
empathetic toward people on the margins of society, but it's quite a
different situation when you find yourself dependent on people who
don't understand your needs, have little education and poor training,
don't speak English well, and may steal your belongings.
Now that Yaneek is leaving to join our military, I may very soon be
back in that situation again. What is most ironic is if I had the
$400,000 annually to pay for what is considered a quality nursing
home here and if I wanted to be in such a place, I'd be cared for by
employees at the same level of education, and they wouldn't be
working for me, but for an impersonal bureaucracy. When my mother was
dying of cancer, she was in a well known Catholic hospital that
serves dying cancer patients. It had a modern clean physical plant.
They had her on medication which kept her free from pain.
But all her personal belongings were stolen. I also remember visiting
one Friday night. The rooms were all laid out in a circle, opening
onto a corridor, and in the center of the circle, there was a glass
enclosed nursing station. As we walked along the corridor, I could
hear a woman crying out, asking for help or something. She must have
been feeling frightened and alone. No one went to her. Those nurses
acted like she didn't exist. That was back in the late 80's. Oh, and
by the way, because she didn't die within a year of being admitted,
they threw her out. She died in the best nursing home I could get her
into, with a much poorer level of care, a few months later.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Monday, November 11, 2019 7:17 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Elizabeth Warren, 1 more thing
I heard it, both during the "debate" and on Democracy Now. I have no
idea why Amy played that up. It sounded to me as if it were simply
another side step in order to avoid saying anything provocative.
Frankly, I run hot and cold. We have a bunch of brain damaged
candidates eager to be the last president of the American Empire.
The billionaires are so greed driven that they no longer understand
that they need to working class in order to continue enriching
themselves.
My current concern is wondering how long our pensions and social
security will continue. That is the source of the majority of our
monthly income.
If we continue headed down the road the way we are, it won't be long
before Cathy and I will be attempting to live on half of what we need
to stay afloat.
Carl Jarvis
On 11/11/19, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Democracy Now thought that Warren's response to Amy's last question
was so significant, that they have it as a separate thing on the
website and it downloaded as a separate episode. Amy asked her to
comment on the first 2 primaries being in majority white states
where candidates would have to spend a lot of time wooing voters and
then the third in a state with a large black population. Warren
said, "Are you going to ask me to comment on that?"
and then she said, "I'm just a player in the game." I suppose that
Amy thinks this is significant, Warren refusing to comment on race?
Miriam
