Don't Vote for a Bully

Although the term, "pithy expressions," may not be trending these days, most people know what "sound bites" and slogans are.

The 2016 presidential election has already contributed many sound bites and slogans, and more should be expected.  Unfortunately, insults are also trending.


My one-liner is:

Don't Vote for a Bully.

Suicide And Disability Applicants

Every Social Security award letter, determination, decision, and notice should include information about suicide hotlines or on­line communities that provide immediate prevention aid by trained professionals

Attorney N. David Kornfeld, writing in the Social Security Law Section of the Federal Bar Association’s newsletter expressed the hope that researchers will be funded to study the issue of whether there is “an increased rate in suicides by Social Security dis­ability claimants or recipients.”

Kornfeld stated that his “working thesis continues to be that there is a suicide epidemic which is only getting worse with increased denials and increased waiting times in the Social Security disability process.” 

Kornfeld called upon the Social Security Administration to engage in suicide prevention and awareness efforts by adding information in every Social Security award letter, determination, decision, and notice. He said that every communication from Social Security should include information about suicide hotlines or on­line communities that provide immediate prevention aid by trained professionals including the National Suicide Preven­tion Lifeline (1-800-273-8255, also available in Spanish 1-800-784-2432).

This article was cited by Charles Hall in his blog, http://socsecnews.blogspot.com/

Social Security News of The Social Security Law Section of the Federal Bar Association can be found at http://www.fedbar.org/Image-Library/Sections-and-Divisions/Social-Security/Winter-2016.aspx.  See pages 10-11, 22-23.

O'Malley onTaxes

O’Malley’s progressive views on taxes and debt-free college education.

In the Democratic presidential debate on November 14, 2015, hosted by CBS News, Martin O'Malley, the former governor of Maryland, endorsed the idea presented in this blog on May 15, 2015, that

“For individuals, all income wherever in the world it is earned whether it is wages or non-wage income should be taxed at the same progressive or graduated rates.”

O’Malley said:

“I believe that we paid for many of the things that we need to do again as a nation, investing in the skills of our people, our infrastructure and research and development and also climate change-- by the elimination of one big entitlement that we can no longer afford as a people. And that is the entitlement that many of our super wealthiest citizens feel they are entitled to pay, namely a much lower income tax rate and a lower tax rate on capital gains. I believe capital gains for the most part should be taxed the same way we tax incomes from hard work, sweat . . . . And if we do those things we can be-- a country that actually can afford debt-free college again.”

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/democratic-debate-transcript-clinton-sanders-omalley-in-iowa/

Presidential Candidates Are Entertaining

TV Game Show

Here is a proposal for a new TV game show.

First show a video clip of the answer only (that is, not including the question) of a presidential candidate answering a question in an interview or at a “debate.”

Second, ask four or five contestants to identify the (a) subject matter of the question and (b) some detail as to what the question might have been or what the person asking the question was looking for in an answer.

Third, play a video clip of the question that was asked in an interview or at a debate.

Fourth, allow the audience by applause to choose two prize-winning contestants:

(1) who came the closest to identifying the (a) subject matter of the question and (b) some detail as to what the question might have been or what the person asking the question was looking for in an answer and

(2) whose answer was the most entertaining.