false talking points

July 2, 2012April 18, 2020

Yet Another False GOP Talking Point: The Affordable Care Act Is A Tax

Many people, including myself, were shocked when the US Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act. The decision was based on the grounds that it fell under the taxing authority of Congress. Republicans and other Conservatives lost their mind screaming like little children about a TAX!!!!! OMFG A TAX!!!! Well like a majority of GOP talking points this too is false and shows they really have no idea how insurance works.

The penalty, which would only affect less than 1%, that people would pay for not buying health insurance is more like the fine you pay if you get a speeding ticket. No rational person would claim that the fine from a traffic ticket is a tax.

September 2, 2011April 18, 2020

Complaining about the poor having appliances misses real problems of being poor

About ten years ago I was trying to explain to someone on an e-mail list I was a member of that I was poor. My apartment was junky, my car barely ran, I couldn’t afford a cell phone or high speed Internet. He laughed. He said I wasn’t poor because I had a computer with Internet access, a car, and air conditioning. Even though I had a temporary job that paid barely above minimum wage and I was one pay check away from being homeless my friend said since I had stuff I wasn’t poor. This is not the first and probably not the last time people judge another’s worth by the stuff they have instead of the actual issues with having little to no income like education and health care.

August 28, 2011April 18, 2020

“Actually, it’s a lot of work being poor” : Facts from one Ohio county

Long line starts early at Unemployment office

Just hearing the talking points makes me angry so forgive me if I sound angry. Someone will make a comment or bitch about “welfare queens” and about how these lazy poor people have wide-screen TVs and microwaves. If these comments come from friends and family, who should know better, it really drives me insane. Finally my hometown newspaper did me a solid and now I have some facts and figures to fight those biased FOX “news” talking points about poor people.

On Monday, August 22nd, the Findlay Ohio Courier had an article talking about the recent retirement of Judy Wauford, as director of the Hancock County Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS). In Ohio, ODJFS handles the state and federal social safety net programs like unemployment, Medicaid, food stamps, and child support enforcement. The piece included some actual facts and data about the poor in Hancock county.