Tag Archives: Politics

46 Under 46

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Well, Biden is going to be our 46th President. In honor of that, I thought I’d come up with a list of 46 things I’d like to see happen under his administration. Some of these are probably more doable on a local or state level, but they’re at least things I’d like to see his administration support. 

This is not an exhaustive list. But I think it’s a pretty good list. 

Get ready. It’s a long list.

Food, Water, and Shelter

  1. Extend unemployment through the course of the pandemic and make payments retroactive.
  2. Restore food safety inspections
  3. Increase eligibility for and reduce requirements for food subsidy programs (eg, WIC)
  4. Create other programs to increase food security
  5. Eliminate hookworm in Georgia
  6. Adopt and Promote Housing-first approaches to homelessness
  7. Ensure that all Americans have access to clean water, including: access to running water for Native American communities; remediation in areas with fracking; restoring access to clean water in Flint

Voting Rights

  1. Restore the voting rights act
  2. Eliminate ID requirements for voters
  3. DC and Puerto Rico statehood

The Internet

  1. Restore Net Neutrality
  2. Ensure all Americans have access to electricity—especially in Native American communities
  3. Increase Broadband availability in rural areas
  4. Regulate Broadband like a Utility so that it’s affordable in both urban and rural areas
Keep going.

The Post Office

  1. Restore all Postal Sorting machines and service capabilities
  2. Remove the requirement for the post office to prepay pensions
  3. Implement Post Office Banking as a way to help for the underbanked

Healthcare

  1. Protect insurance coverage for birth control
  2. Eliminate the tampon tax
  3. Increase access to evidence-based addiction treatment and stop paying for non-evidence based programs
  4. Require healthcare cost transparency: what procedures costs, what is covered by insurance, etc.
  5. Eliminate ‘surprise’ healthcare bills
  6. Pass legislation that requires/implement subsidies that assist hospitals in such a way that all Americans are able to have physical access to healthcare
  7. Prioritize reducing maternal mortality in the US
Halfway there.

Physical Safety

  1. Ban assault rifles
  2. Go after white nationalist terrorists using the same tools used for international terrorists
  3. Prosecute mass shooters as terrorists
  4. Investigate all instances of police brutality
  5. Get rid of ICE and eliminate detention camps for immigrants 
  6. Ban use of rubber bullets and tear gas

Money Matters

  1. Redesign US currency so that blind people can identify the denomination of each bill
  2. Legalize and tax weed.
  3. Increase the prosecution of white collar crime
  4. Increase IRS audits of high net worth individuals
  5. Stop audits of EITC recipients, which disproportionately affects Black Americans
  6. Increase anti-trust investigations and enforcement, particularly in the tech sector
  7. Increase capital gains taxes
Just a little further.

Education 

  1. Create and subsidize a system of free city and state universities
  2. Student loan forgiveness
  3. Equiity funding for K-12 public schools to alleviate disparities based on local funding availability

The Environment

  1. Implement policies that reduce single use plastics
  2. Climate taxes on corporations
  3. Restore all pre-existing EPA protections
  4. Ban drilling and fossil fuel extraction from federally owned areas
  5. Phase out use of fossil fuels, including natural gas
  6. Improve municipal and national public transport systems
You made it!

2020 Voting Information for Philadelphia

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The 2020 general election is less than 6 weeks away. This post is where I’m collecting information specifically to help Philadelphia voters. Some of this information may apply to other voters in Pennsylvania, but you should check with your local authorities. 

I’ll be updating this post as I get additional information. You can get additional information from the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Voting Guide.

Whether you’re a PA voter or not, you can register to vote at Vote.org. 

If you don’t want to read through this, here are some quick links.

The Census

First, if you haven’t filled out the Census, please do so. The Census is what helps determine how congressional districts are drawn. It’s part of what determines how you’re represented in Congress and who you may be eligible to vote for. It also helps determine how much federal aid a given area gets. 

You can fill out the Census online. The deadline was moved up this year, so you only have until September 30th. 

Important Dates for PA Voters

The following are the state deadlines for voting related activities. However, if you’re planning to vote by mail, please assume you have 2 fewer weeks than listed. I’ve provided links that will allow you to register to vote and request a mail-in or absentee ballot online. 

September 29, 2020 – First day of “early voting” in Philadelphia (See below for details).

October 19, 2020 – the last day to REGISTER before the November election. Pennsylvania residents can register online, but you’ll need your driver’s licence PennDOT ID number. If you’ve already registered, you may want to check your voter registration on or before this date just in case.

October 20, 2020 – I strongly suggest that you send in your mail-in or civilian absentee ballot by this date. 

October 27, 2020 – Technically this is the last day to apply for a mail-in or civilian absentee ballot for Pennsylvanians. If you do this, I strongly recommend that, rather than requesting your ballot online, you go to your local election office. 

November 3, 2020 – Election day. Your mail in or absentee ballot must be received by this date. (The PA Supreme Court extended the deadline so that ballots must now be postmarked by November 3rd and received by November 6th, but the Republican party is planning to appeal. To be safe, assume your ballet needs to be received by November 3rd.)

Ensuring* Your Mail-In Ballot is Counted

*as much as that’s possible

There are a few important things to keep in mind if you’re using a Mail-In Ballot. Not doing these things could mean your ballot won’t get counted:

  • Your ballot must be received by the deadline (assume it’s November 3rd). For that to happen, you should probably turn it in in-person or mail it by October 20th.
  • Your ballot needs 2 envelopes. There’s an inner secrecy envelope and an outer envelope. Make sure you use both.
  • You must sign the outer ballot envelope.
  • Your signature must match what’s on file with the elections office.

If you’ve already requested your mail-in ballot, you can check your mail-in ballot status online.

Early Voting and Election Offices in Philadelphia

In Philadelphia, you can vote early at one of 17 locations: 2 permanent elections offices and 15 temporary satellite offices. The Philadelphia Inquirer has information on their locations, hours and services. A few of the surrounding counties are also opening satellite elections offices, as well.

Here’s a brief list of what you can do at these satellite elections offices:

  • Register to vote (until October 19th)
  • Request, receive, fill out, and submit a mail ballot in one stop (until October 27th)
  • Request a mail ballot to take home and submit later (until October 27th)
  • Drop off a completed mail ballot (until November 3rd)

All 17 elections offices will be open 7 days a week from September 29th to November 3rd. Their hours are:
Monday through Thursday: 11:30 am to 6:30 pm
Friday through Sunday: 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Voting in Person

If you’re frustrated by the complications of mail-in ballots, you can vote in person. This year, Philly is using new voting systems. You can watch a video of how those work on the Philadelphia City Commissioners website.

Philadelphia Sample Ballots

I haven’t seen sample ballots yet. I’ll update when I do.