Check out this article first: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0509/22155.html
Alright . . . I find Republicans to be completely baffling, but here we go again. I have three simple things to say to/about Luntz's strategy:
1. There, for many Americans, is no doctor/patient relationship to interfere with. No insurance, no doctor. His political approach does not discuss this simple reality. We're talking about a health care crisis in large part because so many people are uninsured. They make too much money for Medicare and too little to afford their own individual/family plans. How would this fix that problem?!
2. The government rations health care in some societies. The MARKET rations health care here. This is why so many people are uninsured. You can't afford it, you don't get it, and so millions of Americans have no health insurance. This also means that so many Americans don't have a doctor/patient relationship to have the government interfere with. Catch my drift - see point 1.
3. The GOP is trying to look new. But they have the same old ridiculous positions that are not in anyway connected with the reality of peoples' lives. Same dog food, different day. They have more than a branding problem. Their anti-intellectual bias means they're devoid of ideas.
'Nuff said!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The Bowling Ball
I just wanted to write a few reflections on my yoga practice. I have practiced Ashtanga yoga since 1993 with varying levels of daily commitment. Ashtanga is a very challenging, vigorous type of yoga with a pre-set sequence of positions that one can do either in a class or on your own. It's also characterized by following the eight niyamas (if I have that correct), including doctrines such as satya (truth) and non-violence (don't ask me the sanskrit word for that). Admittedly, I don't do it so much for the spiritual practice, but for the ability to reduce stress, exercise regularly, and as a means of making sure I sleep through the night.
Many of the people who practice at my studio are nothing short of pretzels and are quite strong. Many of them are also SMALL. I, on the other hand, am one of the largest women who is nowhere near as flexible and probably stronger because I have more body to move around! However, I take to heart the notion of being where you're at and ashtanga is one of the largest challenges I take on in my life - really. That, childrearing, and the damned dissertation (that I should be writing now, but you'll get this for now).
So, there are days where it feels really fluid, fantastic, I feel open, strong, and flexible and my mind is even with it. I focus in each asana (pose) and I'm sure the glory of God shines on me, etc. (I can't tell if I'm being sarcastic here . . . really). Other days, like recently, the mat looks like an enemy, my body resembles a bowling ball . . . heavy and tightly wound, and I'm lucky if I can finish sun salutations. So the question is why do this at all - well savasana of course (corpse pose where you lie on your mat for a long time, I like to do that for 30 minutes at the end of the practice). OK. Savasana is only part of the picture.
I realize that life works this way. Sometimes things flow and you're with it and it feels good and you're powerful and you wonder how it could every be anything different. And then there are those days where bed looks like a better option because you couldn't possibly do better. In my case, I, like so many others, have a 4 year old to drag me out of bed, so I can't engage that option, but then I fantasize about doing it! As a result, I have to take on everything in little bites daily. This is the discipline of yoga. It's not the pose, it's making sure I breath the entire time I do it. The practice gets done one breath at a time, no faster. The dissertation gets written one letter, one word, one sentence, one paragraph, one page at a time, and no faster. I just have to do it every day. It's the tortoise that wins, not the hare.
I've said nothing deep. I know that. It's just a reminder - because I'm having a day where I'd rather be in bed.
Many of the people who practice at my studio are nothing short of pretzels and are quite strong. Many of them are also SMALL. I, on the other hand, am one of the largest women who is nowhere near as flexible and probably stronger because I have more body to move around! However, I take to heart the notion of being where you're at and ashtanga is one of the largest challenges I take on in my life - really. That, childrearing, and the damned dissertation (that I should be writing now, but you'll get this for now).
So, there are days where it feels really fluid, fantastic, I feel open, strong, and flexible and my mind is even with it. I focus in each asana (pose) and I'm sure the glory of God shines on me, etc. (I can't tell if I'm being sarcastic here . . . really). Other days, like recently, the mat looks like an enemy, my body resembles a bowling ball . . . heavy and tightly wound, and I'm lucky if I can finish sun salutations. So the question is why do this at all - well savasana of course (corpse pose where you lie on your mat for a long time, I like to do that for 30 minutes at the end of the practice). OK. Savasana is only part of the picture.
I realize that life works this way. Sometimes things flow and you're with it and it feels good and you're powerful and you wonder how it could every be anything different. And then there are those days where bed looks like a better option because you couldn't possibly do better. In my case, I, like so many others, have a 4 year old to drag me out of bed, so I can't engage that option, but then I fantasize about doing it! As a result, I have to take on everything in little bites daily. This is the discipline of yoga. It's not the pose, it's making sure I breath the entire time I do it. The practice gets done one breath at a time, no faster. The dissertation gets written one letter, one word, one sentence, one paragraph, one page at a time, and no faster. I just have to do it every day. It's the tortoise that wins, not the hare.
I've said nothing deep. I know that. It's just a reminder - because I'm having a day where I'd rather be in bed.
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