You might have heard about last week's rat attack at a KFC/Taco Bell down in Greenwich village at 6th Ave. and 4th St. A Fox 5 TV news crew was in the area and saw a horde of rats scurrying around the fast food joint, picking up scraps on the floor and hanging out on the trashcans. For those that get nervous around the little furry creatures, the scene would have sent you running.

[Ed. note: Here's that video.]

What made the story even worse and subsequently gain more attention in the local and even national news (and YouTubed) was that the store was inspected by the health department the day before. The report gave the store good marks with no signs of vermin. The establishment had been cited previously, four times in the last three years but conditions show that there hasn't been much change here. Perhaps rats like the combination of pizza and tacos...but I have seen them eat far worse between the rails in the subway stations.

Crossposted from Joshing Politics  read more »

Advocates of universal health insurance gathered Thursday night (May 18) at SEIU Local 32B/J in Soho for wine, cheese, schmoozing, networking and strategizing. Sponsored by a pot pourri of left and labor groups, the organizers and speakers supported John Conyers’ proposal: HR 676 (which now has 68 co-sponsors. Does your Congress Member support the bill? See below.)

The speeches, by US Steelworkers president Leo Gerard and others were in memory of Sumner Rosen, a labor economist, progressive policy advisor and mentor to left activists over the last 40 years and more. There were ringing, but not very entertaining endorsements of the Conyers bill and of the hoped for chance of Democrats taking more control in Congress. The coordinating group in New York is an interesting think tank Rekindling Reform, -- http://www.rekindlingreform.org/ -- a coalition of labor and community groups led by many in the public health community who participated from the left in the last debate on health insurance (1992-4).

The gossip and schmooze focused on the differences between the Conyers proposal and the Working Families Party effort to enact its “Fair Share Bill” which would require retailers to provide health insurance to employees or pay into a state fund which would cover them. The WFP effort would cover 400,000 or so now uninsured workers and impose the costs of health insurance on Wal-Mart and other non-union businesses (which, not so by the way, would help their unionized competitors, compete.). The weaknesses of the Fair Share Bill are straightforward: many are not insured; employment-based insurance is not portable – lose your job, lose your coverage; costs are not controlled because it uses the existing health insurance scheme. The big strength of the Fair Share Bill according to the WFP is that it can be passed.

Similarly, the Conyers bill is straight forward: it provides universal, portable, affordable, quality health coverage for everyone. Its supporters speculate that large employers – like GM – staggering under the costs of their union health insurance plans, will jump at the chance shift to a universal, non-employer based scheme. The disadvantage is that the Bill seems to have no traction, and is not likely to get any so long as GOP control of Congress continues.

Lucky for us we do not have to pick one or the other. We can favor and take action for both the Fair Share Bill and the Conyers Bill.

The Fair Share Bill will be the subject of a legislative hearing in Albany on May 23, 2006. The Working Families Party and its supporters are organizing buses from NYC. Visit the WFP Fair Share website -- http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/WFP/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=280 -- to reserve a spot on a bus and a place on the speakers list.

You can also write your legislators.

The Conyers Bill: HR 676 is the subject of City Council Resolution 75 introduced by G. Oliver Koppell on February 18, 2006. It calls for Congress to pass the Conyers Bill. The following Council members are listed as sponsors: Tony Avella, Gail Brewer, Louis Fidler, Helen Foster, Vincent Gentile, Alan J. Gerson, Anabelle Palmer, and James Sander, Jr.

Is your Council member missing in action? Call or write him/her. Ask him to sign on or tell you why not.

A number of Members of Congress have signed on to support the Conyers Bill including my own Elliot Engel. Several area Congress Members have not:

Among Democrats: Carolyn McCarthy and Nita Lowey have not yet signed on.

Among Republicans: Sue Kelly, Peter King, Vito Foscella and John Sweeney have not endorsed the Conyers Bill.

If you want to join in the discussion about universal health insurance consider attending the Tuesday, May 30, 2006 meeting at New York City’s Community Church, 40 East 35th Street 7PM- free; 6PM Reception $; --(bet. Park and Madison) where Paul Krugman will address a meeting sponsored by the New York Chapter of Physicians for a National Health Program – http://www.pnhpnyc.org/ rsvp is requested.

Britain's National Health Service comes in for its fair share of derision; anecdotes of crooked teeth and long waits for sex-change operations abound. This concern about long waits for gender-adjustment surgery is presumably why American reactionaries yelp about socialism whenever the question of universal healthcare is raised. The other party is the only reason this country does not have universal health care; despite the fact that President Clinton was elected with a mandate to implement it.

Now comes a new study that should properly humiliate all of us: the UK's NHS produces better outcomes, across the board, at all income and social levels, than does our gloriously capitalist and stunningly inefficient system. This for two reasons: Britons suffer less stress and have universal healthcare. One cause of the lowered stress in the UK versus the U.S. is that in the UK, incomes are rising, also across the board - while in America, of course, everyone but the top 1% has seen a drop in real income since 2001, when the oh-so-efficient MBA administration took power. For example, incomes rose 2.1% last year - while inflation was 3.4%, which translates to a 1.3% pay cut. Sorry, y'all.  read more »

*Please join
Dr. Darin Burdman when he presents to
The Manhattan Adult Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) Support Group

Chiropractic Treatment for People with ADD
+ Learn about effective Chiropractic treatments.
+ Discover how Chiropractic can help ADD.
+ Advocate for optimum symptom improvement.
Dr. Burdman has experienced fantastic results with Straight
Chiropractic adjustments and the simultaneous improvement
of ADD/HD symptoms. He will discuss Straight,
‘Pure’, Chiropractic methods and provide vital information
support group members need to advocate for and explore
additional care options for optimum ADD symptom improvement.
Straight Chiropractic can be used in combination and without
interrupting other medical treatments.
Please attend and bring your questions.
Date: Time: Doors open at 6:30
Thursday April 27, 2006 Presentation: 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Location: Information:
Congregation Ansche Chesed; www.maaddsg.org
Please use the entrance on 100th St.
* We request a $5.00 Donation to defray expenses

Bed bugs.

Yes. Bed bugs. From the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene website:

Bed bugs are small insects that feed on the blood of mammals and birds. Adult bed bugs are oval, wingless and rusty red colored, and have flat bodies, antennae and small eyes. They are visible to the naked eye, but often hide in cracks and crevices. When bed bugs feed, their bodies swell and become a brighter red. In homes, bed bugs feed primarily on the blood of humans, usually at night when people are sleeping.

Did you know that for at least a year NYC has been experiencing a bed bug infestation? I didn't. Not until a friend told my wife about their building's problem. Their entire building in the heart of Brooklyn, with considerably more than 100 units, is infested with bed bugs. Every apartment. Every piece of furniture including lamps are infested. My friends are having to spend thousands of dollars to battle this infestation, steam cleaning every item and every surface to kill the hearty pests.

Typically, the bite is painless and rarely awakens a sleeping person. However, it can produce large, itchy welts on the skin. Welts from bed bug bites do not have a red spot in the center – those welts are more characteristic of flea bites...

Although bed bugs may be a nuisance to people, they are not known to spread disease.

Feeling itchy yet? Keep reading!  read more »