Archive for Social media
Does voting still matter in the wake of Citizens United?
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s [still] the silly season – which seems like it’s been going on forever, even though it’s only been a little over a YEAR now – and the field of Republicans jockeying for the chance to run against Barack Obama in November is shrinking by the day.
Off the list are Tim Pawlenty, Gary Johnson, and Herman Cain, who all bailed before there was an actual voting opportunity. Michele Bachmann dropped out after coming in dead last in her home state’s caucuses, and Jon Huntsman drop-kicked himself today (Jan. 16, 2012) after a down-in-the-pack finish in Iowa and New Hampshire. Still in the hunt are Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, and Rick Perry.
My question, driven by what seems to be a very short selection process:
Does voting still matter?
I worry that the answer has drifted no-ward, particularly since the Bloviating Herd (so effectively tagged by Calvin Trillin as the Sabbath Gasbags) shove endless streams of drivel at us 24/7 about projected winners in the days, weeks, and months leading up to a primary or election. The fact that they then, day-of, become so very Caesar’s Wife about not calling anything until all the polls close is … laughable.
The actual citizens I hear talking about voting and candidates often say they vote their wallet. That’s a human reaction. My human reaction is to vote my humanity, not my pocketbook.
I’m sure that puts me in the Crazy as a Shithouse Rat column for many people, but here’s my reasoning: I’d rather vote with an eye on human history – past, present, future, all of the above – instead of for someone who solely promises to put more money in my hands. Or at least take less out of them.
Because the sad truth is they’ll all cost us money in the end, particularly at the national-office level. Whatever they say to achieve office, and whatever they say once they’re in office, I’m not so naive as to think that they’re actually serving citizens. They’re more interested in the Citizens United gold-rush cash that drives the political action committees (PACs) who buy more ad time than the campaigns themselves.
Which brings us back to my vote-human rule. My philosophy certainly puts me in the Don Quixote – or the shithouse-rat-crazy – column, since there’s no way I can outspend GE, or the Koch Bros., or Walmart. I can only participate in groups like No Labels (sanity! who knew?), and march to the polls every time to register my human choice.
And then watch as Citizen Corporate runs off with whoever wins, leaving me jilted. As usual.
That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it …
Throw bricks in the comments. Ready … set … GO.
Don’t wind up on the least-wanted list
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Yes, kids, it’s that time of year again.
ChristmaHanaKwanzaKah is once again in the hearts and on the minds of everyone from sea to shining sea – and beyond – so it’s time for a remedial lesson on How to Succeed in Business Without Really Lying.
Here are the Mighty Casey Media rules for surviving the holidays with your sanity – and your client list – intact:
- Don’t be a grinch. If you’re not a big fan of the holidays, don’t trash those who are. You don’t have to go overboard and wear a pair of reindeer antlers all month, yet neither do you have to tell the office Christmas Elf that s/he is crazy for loving the holidays.
- Be a gracious guest. If you’re invited to a holiday celebration by a client or a colleague, accept with thanks. Attend with intent to find the cheer. Bring a friend along who could be a good prospect for the business. Holiday gifts can come in the form of customers. Take it from one who knows.
- Be a thoughtful host. If you host a holiday gathering, make sure to keep the conversation and connection flowing. Configure your party so there’s plenty of opportunity to interact, and make the rounds continually to ensure that everyone is enjoying themselves. And have a defined end-time for the party, which saves having to shovel folks out the door.
- If you can’t deal, deal yourself out. If the holidays drive you nuts, that seems like a great excuse to take off on a vacation, a retreat, or a sabbatical. Deal yourself out of the holiday merry-go-round, and return to the game refreshed after Santa’s blown town.
Merry ChristmaHanaKwanzaKah to all, and to all a way to make the end-of-year insanity work for you!
New Golden Rule: See something? SAY SOMETHING.
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Recent events have led me to believe that the world is populated by blind people. Or at least people who are easily sold on crazy.
One of those recent developments is the unfolding drama at Penn State, where icons of college sports – both the college and the coach – have been revealed to have been, if not active perpetrators, at least willing-to-look-the-other-way co-conspirators in child sexual abuse.
I use the image on the right because (a) it’s one of my favorite ad posters ever and (b) what happened at Penn State happened in a washroom.
If you see something, SAY SOMETHING. Even if you don’t/can’t/won’t DO something, at least speak up. And don’t take “it’s just [insert utterly unacceptable excuse here], don’t worry, I’ll take care of it” as an adequate response.
SAY something to someone who can/will DO something. Not the bishop that the pedophile priest works for. Not the coach who’s the supervisor of the guy who’s raping a child in the shower.
SAY SOMETHING to the cops.
“If you see something, say something” is the tag-line for a current Dept. of Homeland Security awareness campaign, aimed at stopping terrorist activity before it becomes an actual attack.
If rape isn’t terrorism, I don’t know what is. All crimes against persons – assault, rape, mugging, et al – is terrorism on a small scale, leaving marks as deep as surviving a bus bombing. In some ways, these very personal attacks leave deeper marks, because an entire community doesn’t share the victim’s experience. The person is left to deal with the aftermath alone. Just as the Penn State victim – he’s been dealing with the aftermath since 2002, essentially alone. And now the whole world is watching.
If you see something – someone hitting a child, slapping their spouse, raping a child in a freakin’ locker room – SAY SOMETHING. If you see it in your house. If you see it on your street. If you see it in the office. If you see it at your school.
See bullying? Say something. See domestic violence? Say something. See a theft, or an assault? Say something.
Find someone with a badge and a gun – and not just a university/school cop, either – and report what you saw. Keep talking until they listen.
If you see someone with a badge or a gun perpetrating a crime, call the FBI. Use your cellphone camera, and take it to the media.
See something? SAY SOMETHING.
All that it takes for the triumph of evil is for good men (and women) to do nothing. That’s always true, and never more true than in the situation where both the Catholic church and Penn State find themselves. An institution that’s trusted with the care and education of children has no excuse: if you see something, say something. Otherwise you’re approving the act.
It’s that simple.
That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it …
Why is business expected to pay for healthcare in the US?
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve asked this question frequently over the years, starting in the ’80s, continuing to today … and I’ll keep it up until someone realizes that it’s a failed paradigm.
What we have here, kidz, is what happens when a society decides that socialism is anathema, but doesn’t empower and educate its citizens about how to take responsibility for themselves in ways that will keep them healthy, productive community members.
Business started picking up the tab for healthcare during World War II, when stiff wage controls made it impossible for defense plants to give their employees raises. In place of more money, they started to pay for health insurance – which state and federal government were more than happy to turn into mandated employee benefits over the next 20 years.
What happened then was predictable: three generations have been out of touch with the true cost of healthcare, and the true cost of their choices about their health. If you’re a good little American consumer, you do whatever your television tells you to do: eat this. Buy that. Otherwise the terrorists win!
Three generations of disconnection from the real costs of our medical care have delivered us an epidemic of obesity – thanks to plentiful empty calories, courtesy of agri-business, and our willingness to beach ourselves on our sofas, in our SUVs, or at our computers, the better to receive more messages about what we should buy and eat.
Health insurance costs have skyrocketed as we’ve become a nation of couch potatoes. Companies are scaling back their employee health benefits as those costs continue to rise, putting more and more people in the un-insured or under-insured bucket.
Here’s a suggestion: sell health insurance like auto, home, and life insurance are sold. Put consumers in charge of shopping for, and purchasing, their own insurance. Let business help their employees, if they choose to do so, as a true benefit rather than a mandate. Help every consumer set up a Health Savings Account for their healthcare expenses. And stop the state-by-state divvy-up that lets health insurers essentially gerrymander the health insurance marketplace.
Put consumers fully in charge of their insurance, and their care. Turn the health insurance market into a car-insurance model. People can buy minimum levels of insurance, and assume the risk of that choice. They can opt out completely, and assume all the risk for their healthcare costs. Make it a true marketplace, rather than the giant mess that we currently call health insurance.
Radical? Perhaps. Necessary? I’d say it’s essential.
Until we’re put in touch with the costs of our healthcare, we won’t be encouraged/empowered to take control of our health. As long as we’re using other people’s money to pay for healthcare, we’re stuck where we are.
Which is a very bad place to be.
That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it …
Raising Cain … then lowering him. 3 tips to avoid that mistake.
Posted by: Mighty Casey | Comments (0)photo credit: Toby Harnden|Daily Telegraph
The quadrennial silly season known as the US Presidential race has been in full cry on the Republican side for about six months now, with some highly entertaining spectacle already on display. Unfortunately, a popular favorite, Herman Cain, who had built up quite a head of steam as a leading contender, has been somewhat sidelined by accusations that have put his campaign in PR-crisis-management mode.
First, let me make it clear that I have no dog in this fight. I’m still waiting for the Logic Party to form, and meanwhile am a member of the No Labels movement – in other words, I’m apolitical outside the voting booth. Inside the voting booth, I hold my nose and do the best I can under the circumstances.
My purpose here is to point out the three simple, yet critical, steps Cain and his campaign communications team should have taken to, if not 100% avoid this epic mud-fest, at least keep it at small-mud-puddle level.
I feel for the guy. I covered every Presidential race from 1980 to 2004. As I put it in my bio: I covered wars, Presidential campaigns, and Presidential campaigns that turned into wars. Politics is a rough, nasty, no-holds-barred business – the higher the office, the sharper the knives and the bigger the guns you’ll be up against.
Failing to recognize that, and failing to get in front of any negative information in your past by revealing it yourself first, guarantees painful war wounds.
That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it …