Why Medicaid for Flint, and Medicare for Montana?

Leftover sends this, an exploration as to why the folks of Flint, Mich., were given Medicaid for their toxic water, and the folks of Libby, Mont., were given Medicare for life. Writes Donna Smith at Common Dreams: Governor Snyder pressed the Feds to expand Medicaid coverage to children and youth under 21 years old and to …

Politicians poisoned the water in (mostly black and poor) Detroit

The toxic drinking water in Flint, Mich., is a result of a series of stupid decisions on the part of political leaders and others. This Ebony piece compares the situation to the fumbling and worse after Katrina. Bankole Thompson writes about water so nasty General Motors wouldn’t even use on their car parts: For 18 months, …

The dreadful illness of povertenza

A rich white boy from Texas escapes serious punishment after killing four people and injuring another while drunk by pleading “affluenza.” Then surely  a poor black boy can plead povertenza as an excuse for appalling behavior. Love that last link, by Jessica Ann Mitchell. Here’s more on rich white boy Ethan Couch and his enabling mother because, as Mitchell writes: Basically, …

What happened in Oregon…

White people can be unbearably tender

So a friend of mine, the Rev. Dr. Shelley D. Best, posted this selfie on Facebook a few months back: If you can’t read what she wrote to accompany the selfie, it says: In a room full of folks talking about us (and the educational achievement gap) that don’t look like us… hmmmm … I saw …

What happens when the majority becomes the minority?

Because it’s really already happened, in schools. This country is becoming increasingly diverse, as evidence by this chart that parses public school enrollment. I find this fascinating. As I type this, the admin across the hall is speaking Spanish to someone who just called her on the phone. Last week, I had some of the best …

Mr. Scott didn’t deserve this (NSFW)

Feidin Santana, the man who recorded the shooting death of Walter Scott, 50, in North Charleston, S.C., by a police officer, said, “Mr. Scott didn’t deserve this.” The death of Mr. Scott, who is black, came after a traffic stop. The police officer, Michael T. Slager, who is white, has been charged with murder. Both …