Health Care Reform Comes Down To The Wire
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Karen Tumulty of Time magazine joins us to discuss the arm-twisting and more on Capitol Hill over health care reform.
Health Care Benefits Squeeze Cities
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Cities and towns across the country are trying to figure out how to pay for the health care plans they offer their employees. The Boston Globe reviewed six months of municipal health plans in Massachusetts. The newspaper found that costs doubled from 2001 to 2008, adding one billion dollars to municipalities’ budgets. Sean Murphy of the Boston Globe joins us. We’ll also speak with Neil Bomberg, who lobbies Congress for the National League of Cities.
Who Owns Kafka
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The BBC’s Katya Adler reports from Jerusalem on an international legal battle over the contents of safety deposit boxes once owned by 20th century author Franz Kafka; who owns them now, and what’s in the boxes?
A Scientologist Speaks Out On Church Abuse
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Christie Collbran has been a Scientologist since the day she was born. Now, at the age of 33 and after the lengthy and costly process of leaving the organization, she says the leaders of the Church of Scientology are greedy and abusive tyrants who have perverted the original teachings of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Completely cut off from her family and starting anew, Christie tells her story.
The States That Didn’t Make The Cut
Map of Translyvania (Michael Trinklein)
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America’s fifty states seem fixed now, but as Michael Trinklein points out, over the years there have been movements to create new states such as Texlahoma and Shasta. We talk to Michael about the wanna-bes, which he writes about in his new book “Lost States: True Stories of Texlahoma, Transylvania, and Other States that Never Made It.”
Music From The Show
- Calexico, “Crumble”
- Ahmad Jamal, “Patterns”
- Paul Simon, “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover”
- The Wee Trio, “Flint”
- Christian McBride, “Brother Mister”
- David Goodrich, “Susquehanna Waltz”
The Scientology spat story has the makings of a great reality show! Think of the star power-Cruise! Travolta! Kirstie Alley! How this for a title: “The Real World: Xenu”?
Posted by Daniel Guidera, on March 16th, 2010 at 12:51 pmRE: Health Care Benefits Squeeze Cities
This issue is broader than just the Health Care costs. At one time people accepted lower take home pay as a public employee for better benefits and job security. Now Public employees wages, health care and pension cost exceed the private sector by 25% to 30%. And there is little to no chance of being caught in a “layoff”.
The public employees will need to pay more of the health care bill in co-pay and overall coverage to shoulder their fair share. And they will need to migrate to defined amount retirement just like the private sector.
Regards,
Posted by Eric Pavilonis, on March 16th, 2010 at 1:20 pmEric
The States That Didn’t Make The Cut
Perhaps Mr. Trinklein mentions it in his book, but for the listeners that look here, there is a Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky.
Also, at the present time states are forbidden by the Constitution from splitting or combining to form new states.
Posted by Richard Cole, on March 16th, 2010 at 6:02 pm[...] Can you change the direct link to http://www.hereandnow.org/2010/03/rundown-316-2/ [...]
Posted by A Scientologist Speaks Out On Church Abuse « Moving On Up a Little Higher, on March 17th, 2010 at 9:21 pm