Spring\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 New Moon (Flower)<\/p>\n
A word for the ones in silent despair, hiding behind doors and well-kept lawns, all those in trouble.<\/p>\n
A while back I mentioned a neighbor whose life turned upside down over a week-end.\u00a0 He went from\u00a0 a productive, active guy to a suicidal victim of a progressive form of multiple sclerosis.\u00a0 After his diagnosis and subsequent treatment brought little relief he tried to end his life, bringing paramedics and the blue and white Allina ambulance to his door.\u00a0 He did this\u00a0 while his wife talked with us about our new orchard.<\/p>\n
Now, six months or so later, their bank account is empty.\u00a0 They are putting necessities on credit cards and the “disabilty insurance” they have is not insurance, but a loan, a loan they have to repay.\u00a0 Their lawn is neat, the flower beds tended and ready for plants.\u00a0 The small evergreens they planted when they moved in some years back have grown into mid-size trees.\u00a0 The American flag flutters from their flag-pole, lit with lights.<\/p>\n
He built an observatory a few years back, I may have mentioned this.\u00a0 It now sits there, a white dome with a go-to Celestron telescope, abandoned by its maker.\u00a0 His MS is advanced stage 2, of which, when I asked Kate about it, she said, “It’s not good.”<\/p>\n
Vulnerable people have had their vulnerability magnified by the economic crisis.\u00a0 That’s what this has driven home to me.\u00a0 Imagine being in a situation where a medical condition threatens not only your retirement, but your house, your family.\u00a0 Now imagine all that in a situation where the economic eats up what little cash you already have.<\/p>\n
Their situation is an argument, the argument, for universal health care and a safety net for persons with debilitating illness, a safety adequate to maintain gains they have made over ther course of a working career.\u00a0 I’m not talking here about pleasure boats, expensive vacations and country club memberships; I’m talking about a house, food, health care and family security.<\/p>\n
This cries out for justice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Spring\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 New Moon (Flower) A word for the ones in silent despair, hiding behind doors and well-kept lawns, all those in trouble. A while back I mentioned a neighbor whose life turned upside down over a week-end.\u00a0 He went from\u00a0 a productive, active guy to a suicidal victim of a progressive form of multiple sclerosis.\u00a0 … Continue reading Why We Need Universal Health Care<\/span>