Ever since Ronald Reagan and his “welfare queens” assertion, the Republican Party has been against granting very poor, often homeless people any cash assistance. Now we have objectively verifiable evidence that this, like most Republican social perspectives is crap, as this report describes. As it says, “According to Foundations for Social Change, giving out the cash transfers in the Vancouver area actually saved the broader society money. Enabling 50 people to move into housing faster saved the shelter system $8,277 per person over the year, for a total savings of $413,850. That’s more than the value of the cash transfers, which means the transfers pay for themselves.” Once again proving my assertion that social policies that foster wellbeing are also cheaper than other more punitive options. Will we learn from what are Northern neighbors discovered. Frankly, it will never happen as long as Republicans control government at any level. Not because they are Republicans but because Republicans have a sick and distorted worldview.
A man protests homelessness in Vancouver. Around 235,000 Canadians experience homelessness each year, and the rates continue to rise. Credit: Mark Ralston / AFP / Getty
Ray, a man in his 50s, used to live in an emergency homeless shelter in Vancouver, Canada. Then he participated in a study that changed his life. He was able to pay for a place to live and courses to prepare him for his dream job.
The newly published, peer reviewed PNAS study, conducted by the charity Foundations for Social Change in partnership with the University of British Columbia, was fairlysimple. It identified 50 people in the Vancouver area who had become homeless in the past two years. In spring 2018, it gave them each one lump sum of $7,500 (in Canadian dollars). And it told them to do whatever they wanted with the cash.
“At first, I thought it was a little far-fetched — too good to be true,” Ray said. “I went with one of the program representatives to a bank and we opened up a bank account for […]
I have told you there are going to be three major internal migrations with millions of Americans moving to new locales, and that it is going to create a great deal of stress and difficulty. As this article explains, it is now happening. This is going to become a major trend in the United States and other countries.
The cost of housing in Western states is soaring. But the simple solution — build more houses — is proving difficult. Credit: Chelsea Jia Feng / Insider
Tucked in the far southwest corner of Colorado is the historic city of Durango. Built in the 19th century at a railroad junction, it’s nestled in a bend of the Animas River as it flows through the magnificent San Juan Mountains.
Stunning scenery and copious amenities helped attract 460 new residents to the town of 19,000 during the pandemic. That may not sound like a lot, but it was enough to juice median home prices by 50% in just three years, with them soaring from $500,000 in 2019 to over $750,000 by 2022. The boom caught longtime residents, recent arrivals, and even municipal planners by surprise. During a meeting held by a local economic-development organization early last year, the county deputy manager at the time, Mike Segrest, warned the city was headed for “complete disaster” if it couldn’t get prices under control, since the spike has meant that teachers, police officers, […]
Here you see the positive side of the library issue. The raping of libraries by MAGAts, which also drives away staff, is the other end of the spectrum. Which do you want your kids to experience? The rightwing nonsense about libraries and books, should be driven back into the sewer from which it arose.
Children reading books Credit: Anastasia Shuraeva
NEW YORK, NEW YORK — Does your kid read a lot? A new study suggests they’re likely happier, more physically active, have a more active imagination, and even problem-solve better than kids who rarely or never read.
The poll of 1,500 American parents and 500 K–6 teachers revealed that 91 percent of children between five and 12 years-old who are avid readers are also happier than those who don’t (36%). Likewise, 92 percent who read frequently are more physically active than those who don’t (40%).
Kids who read “often” and “very often” generally have a more active imagination than those who rarely or never read (95%, compared to 57%).
Children who read more also take a more proactive approach to resolving negative situations and problems. While 49 percent who rarely read don’t attempt to resolve difficult situations, 52 percent who read often try to resolve the situation themselves, and 69 percent who read very often turn to their parents for help.
Valerie Tarico, Psychologist and Contributing Writer - AlterNet
Stephan:
I have been thinking for some time, asking how can you be a Republican woman and how could that change? Here is a very thoughtful assessment, by a woman which, in this instance, I think this is important. It answers the question.
Image via Crush Rush / Shutterstock. “How to reverse ‘democracies being taken over by far-right ideologies and conspiracy thinking,” Valerie Tarico
Lists of crazy comments about women by Republican men have been an internet staple for years. If the party agenda were to alienate as many females as possible, they should be doing quite well.
Worse yet, from an impact standpoint, the policy priorities of Republican electeds match their expressed attitudes. Equal pay? Contraception? Abortion? Paid family leave? Childcare support? Forget it.
And then there’s behavior.
As Leonard Pitts Jr. put it, here is where we stand:
After supporting senatorial candidate Roy Moore (a credibly accused child molester) President Donald Trump (a confessed perpetrator of sexual assault) nominated to the Supreme Court Brett Kavanaugh (a credibly accused attempted rapist) who would, if confirmed, serve alongside Clarence Thomas (a credibly accused sexual harasser).
The Grand Old Party isn’t much of a party for women; it’s more like a frat party—a power-drunk letch-fest. The Grand Old Boys Party.
One might think by now that Republican and woman would be a contradiction in terms. Granted, […]
Has criminal Trump ever done anything that didn’t cause damage and degrade wellbeing? I can’t think of anything. And now we have the fact-based report on what his hate wall along the Southern border actually did. None of it is good, as this report describes.
“This racist political stunt has been an ineffective waste of billions of American taxpayers’ dollars—and now we know it has caused immeasurable, irreparable harm,” said Congressman Raúl Grijalva.
A U.S. government watchdog agency on Thursday released a report exposing how former President Donald Trump’s wall construction along the nation’s border with Mexico negatively affected cultural and natural resources, as critics have long argued.
“The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Department of Defense (DOD) installed about 458 miles of border barrier panels across the southwest border from January 2017 through January 2021,” according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. “Most (81%) of the miles of panels replaced existing barriers.”
“The agencies installed over 62% of barrier miles on federal lands, including on those managed by the Department of the Interior,” the report continues. “Interior and CBP officials, as well as federally recognized tribes and stakeholders, noted that the barriers led to various impacts, including to cultural resources, water sources, and endangered species, and from erosion.”
