Ron’s brother passed at about 4 pm today. His long time friend was holding his hand. How is Ron doing … he is simply denying and emotional involvement.
We already made plans for the next steps. But first Ron has to make all the phone calls to family and friends, and his brother’s long time boyfriend. We had gone to the bank and gotten a credit card in case Ron needed it. We had money in our savings, but Ron was worried … understandably and he does have to go to New Hampshire. But now tomorrow he has to go to the Ford Dealer and have the car serviced. I just suggested to him his favorite older sister fly into our area and they go up to NH together. He likes the idea. Go to go, lots going on. Best wishes, hugs, loves. Scottie
For legal purposes the title of this video is a question and not to be construed as a statement of fact. The Nex Benedict story has been tied to Libs of TikTok and its founder Chaya Raichik. Is she to blame? Why does the first amendment protect Libs of TikTok?
Long time followers / readers may remember the struggle we had getting Ron’s older brother in a nursing home as he lost touch with reality and couldn’t care for himself. He actually knew it was happening and drove himself to the VA to get help, but it progressed so quickly. The VA stabilized him and sent him home, but he got both physically and mentally worse. He is a long time cancer survivor from the time when they over radiated cancer patients, causing his intestines to harden and die, requiring many surgeries to remove them to stop internal bleeding. So he got so bad he was constantly bleeding out from his butt and pooping everywhere along with not being mentally able to clean himself, up after himself, or even understand the issue.
Ron and his sister worked hard to get him into a nursing home that could care for him. It took a lot of money, his sister had to pay over 5 grand for the first month to even get him into a nursing home. Medicaid rules said a person had to be in a nursing home for a month before they could be covered my medicaid and medicare. Ron’s brother is very low income so he got a small $100 supplemental income from the military for his illness in the military, and had medicaid. But because he was on medicaid he couldn’t have a lot of assets and the nursing home would take all but 30 dollars of his income. Which meant Ron and his sister would have to put money into his bank account every month to pay his credit card bill, other expenses, give him extra money in his home account to buy treats and stuff, and his car insurance. The other siblings despite having far more money than Ron and I simply couldn’t find it in their hearts to help pay their brother’s bills. One sister tried a few times to help, but she was losing her own grip on the world and couldn’t figure out how to do it or would forget, so Ron and his other sister just started covering the entirety themselves. The paid off his card and sold his car. They had to stop his military supplement because that would have put him a few dollars over the Medicaid limit, and Medicaid was paying for his care. His brother went into the nursing home the end of 2019 or beginning 2020. That required twice a year expensive trips to NC.
Ron would drive up to NC and get a hotel room just outside the airport. Ron’s sister would fly into the airport and they would go to the town that the nursing home was in and get a hotel room. They would spend a week or so with their brother, buying him clothing or things he needed / wanted. At first they bought him electronics like phones but he was unable to use them and they realized that was useless. A year ago they moved Ron’s brother to in nursing home hospice care. And at some point they started doing Zoom calls every couple weeks first with the brother and family done by the home staff then hospice staff included.
While writing this Ron was heading for a nap. I went to restart the 17 year old dryer as it had stopped. It wouldn’t start. I looked and the door switch which had been getting flaky the last year gave up the ghost. It had all our only deep pocket bedding for the Purple mattress we bought. So no nap for Ron, he got up, together we pulled it out, he is cleaning it and trying to figure out how to get to the switch.
Over the last 3 and half years his brother got worse. Sometimes he would go months tracking reality, but then he would slip and lose touch with the real world. This year he has been out of reality, and a lot of the time his health was so bad he couldn’t really hold himself upright and needed support. Ron and his sister started getting calls this last month that his brother got out of bed during the night without calling for staff and tried to go to the bathroom by himself. He can’t walk. So he falls. It has happened I think three times. The first were minor but this last time was serious. Remember this is a nursing home, not a prison and they couldn’t restrain him in bed.
This time he fell and broke his leg bone right at the hip joint. The home and hospice people called Ron but they did not know how bad it is. He was so bad that when Ron authorized him to be taken to a hospital, the hospital called him and said he would only last a couple of days and that he had internal bleeding they couldn’t trace that may have been going on for a while. His brother had the issue with his intestine hardening and getting so brittle they would tear apart. The last few years the doctors removed as much as they could, but it was dicey if anything they stitched to would hold. That was yesterday. Ron and his sister were making plans to quickly go see him.
They may have just run out of time. As I am writing this at 2:32 pm on 4/10/2024 and while Ron was working on fixing the switch from the dryer the hospital called. His brother was stopping breathing and then after a few minutes would suddenly take a breath. The intervals are increasing as they watch him. Remember that he is on hospice, we knew he was dying for the last few years and so while all comfort measures can be given, no lifesaving care can be. No intubation nor resuscitation. We just had no idea it would be this soon or Ron and his sister would have gone to see him again. But normally a hip or upper leg break is hard for an elderly person to come back from, most people in their 80s who break a hip die soon after.
Ron is on his phone, but 17 years working in ICUs tell him his brother has only hours to live. The nursing staff at the hospital agreed. There is no way short of a Star Trek instant teleporter that Ron could get there in time. He so far is calling people and holding it in. But he is going to need all my sympathy and support tonight. Thank you everyone. But I may be a few days before I get back online depending on how much Ron needs me. He comes from a large once very tight family, 8 siblings. He has handled the loss of the older ones but it gets harder for him as he ages and more have died. He may need a lot of support. Best Wishes. Hugs. My love for all of you. Scottie
I want to thank Barry for sending me the link to this video. Best wishes friend. Scottie.
The video is about the politically driven fight to end trans care in Texas for minors and adults. And how it is affecting four trans families and others. In it you will hear false claims made about chopping off little boys penises which is not happening, but no mention of breast augmentation and nose jobs for teenage girls. You will hear claims made that are misinformation, lies, and myths. The goal is to create a straight cis fundamentalist Christian republican society ruled by men, and to do this they use the claims of saving the children to rile up the base and muddy the water to get more votes. They don’t care who they hurt in the process, they wouldn’t even allow current minors on puberty blockers and hormones to be weaned off or to continue treatment. This is not about the health of children as Texas did not accept summer food assistance for poor people, they did not do anything about school shootings and gun control, they did not increase child health care at all they only removed the medically accepted best practices for gender nonconforming kids. Hugs. Scottie
When Texas lawmakers introduce a record number of anti-trans bills, transgender kids and their families from across the state converge on the Capitol to fight back.
Another great video destroying anti-trans propaganda, myths, and misinformation. He talks slow, is methodical, and uses sources he displays and has in his description box to make his points. Often he will go through the studies that the anti-trans people use to show they either did not say what is claimed, are way out of date, used the wrong methods, or simply were created to be used for anti-trans propaganda. He shows not only the bad studies and debunks them, but the real modern medically reviewed and approved studies showing that very few detransition and those that do mostly do so because of negative treatment from society, peers, and family. People who live all their childhood knowing and claiming they are a different gender are not suddenly going to stop saying it at 18 or 21. If they are going to suffer all that mistreatment and hate growing up, they are what they are telling you. Hugs. Scottie
Frank Turek and Sean McDowell make ridiculous pseudoscientific claims about LGBTQ people. Here I debunk them with actual scientific research.
Subscribe using my link for 30% off unlimited access or try it this month for less than $1. Claims I debunk: Abuse and trauma cause non-heterosexuality and gender non-conformity, not affirming queer people is the best way to help them, being gender nonconforming is a social media contagion, rapid onset gender dysphoria is real, gender dysphoria can and should only be treated with therapy or prayer, gender dysphoria is similar to and should be treated in the same way as anorexia, 80% of gender dysphoric youths grow out of it by age 18, medical intervention for gender dysphoria does not help mental health outcomes, and trans s rates skyrocket 10 years after transition.
I have covered these bans before. Simply put the fundamentalist conservative right are terrified that social media is showing our kids that it is ok to be accepting and tolerant while doing things for all the public instead of just the wealthy. In other words, showing them a different way they could be than simply right wing fundamentalist religious straight cis republicans. So they revamped schools to indoctrinate the kids with right wing fundamentalist. Ah but their indoctrination was being undone by social media. Well ban that also. See that is the right wing way, they don’t like it so ban it, they are the original cancel culture creators. Their way of thinking is to force everyone to live and be just as they are, think like they do, be who they are told to be. Force everyone to worship the same way, live the same way, listen to only the same stuff, eat the same meals … in the land of the free! Their idea of freedom is the right to take freedom away from others. Hugs. Scottie
House Speaker Paul Renner said the bill addresses the ‘addictive features that are at the heart of why children stay on these platforms for hours on end.’
The measure would take effect at the beginning of 2025 – if it survives expected lawsuits from the nation’s largest tech companies.
In that case, minors under 16 would be barred from social media platforms, unless they’re 14- or 15-year-olds who get a parent’s permission.
“You can have a kid in the house safe, seemingly, and then you have predators that can get right in there into your own home,” DeSantis said at a press conference in Jacksonville. “You could be doing everything right but they know how to get and manipulate these different platforms.”
The governor was joined by local school officials and bill sponsors as well as state Attorney General Ashley Moody and Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr., all of whom backed the policy.
Also there was House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, who negotiated with DeSantis on the legislation (HB 3) after the governor vetoed the original version, citing legal and parents’ rights concerns.
The legislation passed both legislative chambers by a broad bipartisan basis, with only a fraction of Democrats dissenting, claiming it was government overreach that would be overturned in the courts. First Amendment advocacy organizations have also come out against the measure, saying largely the same.
But DeSantis and Renner said they believe the measure will survive judicial scrutiny.
“What’s unique in this bill is we didn’t focus on content,” Renner said. “You will not find a line in this bill that addresses good speech or bad speech because that would violate the First Amendment.
“… But what we have addressed is the addictive features that are at the heart of why children stay on these platforms for hours and hours on end.”
The bills defines the affected social media platforms as ones with features such as push notifications and infinite scrolling, which loads content as the user scrolls down, eliminating the need to click to a next page. Those features have had an “devastating effect” on the mental health of children, Renner said.
He predicted an imminent legal challenge from NetChoice, a tech industry trade group that has filed lawsuits in other states against similar measures and has opposed Florida’s.
In a statement shared shortly after the signing, the group called the restrictions unconstitutional.
“An unconstitutional law will protect exactly zero Floridians. HB 3 is also bad policy because of the data collection on Floridians by online services it will in effect require. This will put their private data at risk of breach,” said Carl Szabo, NetChoice’s vice president and general counsel.
“HB 3 forces Floridians to hand over sensitive personal information to websites or lose their access to critical information channels,” he continued. “This infringes on Floridians’ First Amendment rights to share and access speech online.”
This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA TODAY Network-Florida First Amendment reporter Douglas Soule can be reached at DSoule@gannett.com.
This is interesting. I even found the news report that went with it very interesting. In the video the Mom’s for Liberty claims they were not banning or burning books, but then she goes on to say these books should be available for people under 18 in libraries. When she was asked about how in her push for her parents rights, she was effectively removing the rights of parents who endorse their child reading those types of books. She replied that they had that right to read it to their kids but not give it to hers. Fair but by removing them from a library how would a poor parent working many hours to survive get the book or a kid questioning their feelings know where to find it or how to get it. Again kids who are different, who are gay or gender nonconforming know that at a young age. They know they are different, they know they feel differently than their classmates. I am gay, knew that very young. In elementary classes some of my classmates had crushes on their female teachers, I had one on my male teacher. It is something straight cis people don’t seem to understand because the world is set up for the way they feel, so they are accepted, they are comfortable. Some people want so badly to keep that straight cis only world and avoid losing their comfort and status so badly they would force large segments of the population to deny their authentic self and live in misery by living a lie. That is incredible selfish and regressive minded. One great thing is the second video after the first shows how conservatives and fundamentalists are losing reelection to school boards and offices controlling education that they won only a few years ago driven to control how everyone lives including how children learn. One other thing was that she said a book used the N word, which she said in its integrity, and she felt that it was wrong for a 7 year old to read or hear that word. OK but that word is thrown at little black kids for the smallest ages. I posted of a four year old black girl called that. The right wing hate media uses the word constantly. So why not explain to kids what the word means and its harmful history to explain why it is not used today as the Mom’s for Liberty just did. Hugs. Scottie
The American Library Association released its annual list of the top 10 most targeted books of 2023 on Monday, the majority of which were challenges because of their LGBTQ content.
“Gender Queer” by Maia Kobabe topped the list for the third year in a row. The graphic memoir, which chronicles the author’s experience with sexuality and gender from childhood to adulthood, was challenged for its LGBTQ content and for claims that it is sexually explicit.
“Gender Queer,” by Maia Kobabe
Courtesy of Oni Press
“At ALA, we are fighting for the freedom to choose what you want to read,” said ALA President Emily Drabinski in the announcement. “Shining a light on the harmful workings of these pressure groups is one of the actions we must take to protect our right to read.”
In 2023, the ALA recorded 4,240 unique titles that have been targeted for removal or restriction in libraries and schools. It’s a record-breaking 65% increase from 2022, the highest totals recorded by the ALA since it began collecting data more than 20 years ago.
MORE: What’s in some of the most challenged books in America?
Jennie Pu, ALA member and Hoboken Public Library Director, told ABC News that “this list affirms the pattern that we’re seeing, that it’s a small group of people who don’t want their stories to be told and the retargeting of historically underrepresented and marginalized voices.”
Hoboken’s library system was declared a book sanctuary in 2023.
Across the country, classroom and library content has been at the center of contentious debates between educators, librarians, parents and politicians. Conservative-led legislative efforts to restrict what discussions and content could be had in classrooms regarding race, gender, sex, and sexual orientation has ignited a debate about the materials students and their families have access to.
Advocates of such legislation say these policies ensure that “inappropriate” content is weeded out of classrooms to protect children from “indoctrination,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott have said.
Politicized groups or individuals have been at the center of large swaths of book challenges nationwide, sometimes demanding the censorship of multiple titles — often dozens or hundreds at a time. This helped drive the surge in book challenges, according to the ALA.
The other most-targeted titles, in order of the number of challenges, are:
“All Boys Aren’t Blue,” by George M. Johnson
Courtesy of Farrar, Straus and Giroux
2. “All Boys Aren’t Blue,” by George M. Johnson, for LGBTQ content and claims of sexually explicit content.
3. “This Book is Gay,” by Juno Dawson, for LGBTQ content, sex education, and claims of sexually explicit content.
“The Perks of Being a Wallflower…Show more
Courtesy of Simon & Schuster
4. “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” by Stephen Chbosky, for LGBTQ content, rape, drugs, profanity and claims of sexually explicit content.
5. “Flamer,” by Mike Curato, for LGBTQ content and claims of sexually explicit content.
MORE: Book bans and anti-LGBTQ laws: how queer authors are responding
“The Bluest Eye,” by Toni Morrison
Courtesy of Vintage International
6. “The Bluest Eye,” by Toni Morrison, for themes about rape, incest, DEI content and claims of sexually explicit content.
7. “Tricks,” by Ellen Hopkins, for LGBTQ content, themes concerning drugs, rape, and claims of sexually explicit content, tied with “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl,” by Jesse Andrews for claims of sexually explicit content.
9. “Let’s Talk About It,” by Erika Moen and Matthew Nolan, for LGBTQ content, sex education, and claims of sexually explicit content.
10. “Sold,” by Patricia McCormick, for claims of sexually explicit content and themes concerning rape.
The ALA compiles its data from reports filed with its Office for Intellectual Freedom by library professionals and news reports. However, the organization says the data is only a “snapshot” of book censorship attempts because it’s not likely that all attempts are reported to the ALA or covered by the press.
The latest report marks the start of the organization’s National Library Week.
Amazing story about a librarian hit by MAGA rage in Idaho: Activists demanded 400 books removed. *None* were in her library. She was then hounded from her job by threats.
On the pod, head of American Library Association goes deep on what libraries face👇 https://t.co/qSJP0DVx5X
Children are irredeemably broken from the minute they are born unless their parents subject them to a public dunking and give money to a man wearing a dress.
Conservatives have been seething since the Stonewall riots of 1969 and especially since 1973 when homosexuality was removed from the list of psychiatric disorders in the DSM. They’ve been plotting their revenge ever since and it’s now reaching a climax. Time to take up arms again and hit the streets, if that’s what it takes.
I still think this is their dying gasp. The nutters might try to force everyone to return to ‘church’, but that’s just not going to happen. They’re dangerous, so be prepared. Let them shoot each other in the streets though. IMO
I agree. the USA has always had these swings between religion and irreligiosity. right now the pendulum is swinging toward irreligiosity and the nutcases are scared, because they know they will eventually lose. and they also refuse to accept their extremism is why they are losing.
I remember back when I was growing up and the only books allowed in the Library were the ones that talked about how wrong being gay was. Lots of books though talking about how you could change to straight easy peazy. Really FUCKED ME UP as a kid.
The same was true for me when I checked out a book called “growing up straight.” It fucked me up, that is, until I checked out another book called “Society and the healthy homosexual.” It sent me straight, so to speak.
My memoir, “Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant,” was recently banned by my high school. I had booked an all-school assembly with the librarian for Nov. She loved the book so much she wanted to do a second event at the rival high school. A week after I gave my approval, she wrote me and said she couldn’t move forward with either event and that I need to talk to the assistant superintendent if I had any further questions. Moms for Liberty is active and they are threatening to recall politicians, so it’s easier to upset the writer than the moms. My book was just named a notable book from the State of MI and an honor book from Stonewall, yet I still can’t go back to my own high school.
I remember growing up and my parents would not allow me to read “The Exorcist.” Guess what I was reading when I went to bed. “Your mother sows socks that smell.”
If you are unsure of the difference between sex and gender, or if you are question many of the hate myths about trans people, or possibly thinking trans people are new and never been accepted then please watch this video.
The host is easy to listen too, shows his sources, and uses facts, yes those pesky facts that refute all the anti-trans misinformation spread desperately through the right wing media. The video covers how anti-trans groups formed fake medical groups to claim science said that trans was a sickness or such, but the video show that real professionals in medical science disagree and show that being trans and gender nonconforming is a normal difference some people have.
Finally the hosts shows how the anti-trans movement push was started around 2008 when conservatives and fundamentalist religious groups were losing the war against gay people and gay marriage. They were seeing gay people normalized on TV and moved to prevent that from happening for trans people. Plus the video shows how this is about state control over everyone’s body. He shows how the idea of strict gender roles formed when men felt marginalized and wanted to create a society that was male oriented and was based on male superiority. For men to be superior, that meant they needed females to be inferior. So strict gender roles were created and enforced. This only has been the way for the last few centuries, not forever. Hugs. Scottie
Does Gender Even Matter?
There’s a full blown panic sweeping America, and it’s all about gender, and especially people who don’t conform to traditional categories. But what is it about people’s gender choices that makes others so worried? Was this an inevitable facet of modern life, or is something more complicated going on? Let’s find out in this Wisecrack video on Gender Theory: Why Now?
Douglas Soule
Scottie's Playtime 