Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Jimmy Kimmel thanks hospitals for saving his son, slams Trump in teary opener.

The late-night TV host's story might change how you think about our health care system.

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His voice breaking and tears welling up in his eyes, Jimmy Kimmel delivered the most compelling 13-minute monologue of his career.

"I have a story to tell about something that happened to our family last week," he said at the top of his show on May 1, 2017. "Before I go into it, I want you to know it has a happy ending."

On April 21, his wife gave birth to a baby boy, William John Kimmel. Three hours later, an attentive nurse noticed the infant wasn't as healthy as he had seemed before. Three days later, Kimmel's newborn son underwent surgery to repair a congenital heart condition.

Images via Jimmy Kimmel Live/YouTube.

The most powerful and poignant part of Kimmel's monologue comes at the end.

"We were brought up to believe that we live in the greatest country in the world," Kimmel said, choking back tears about 10 minutes into the clip.

"But until a few years ago, millions and millions of us had no access to health insurance at all. You know, before 2014, if you were born with congenital heart disease, like my son was, there’s a good chance you’d never be able to get health insurance because you had a pre-existing condition."

Kimmel is a millionaire many, many times over, and as such, he can afford just about any medical treatment in existence. But whether or not a newborn baby deserves to live shouldn't hinge on that baby's parent's paycheck.

"If your baby is going to die and it doesn’t have to, it shouldn’t matter how much money you make. I think that’s something that whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat or something else, we all agree on that, right?"

Kimmel continued, "We need to make sure that the people who represent us and people are meeting about this right now in Washington understand that very clearly. Let’s stop with the nonsense. This isn’t football. There are no teams. We are the team. It’s the United States. Don’t let their partisan squabbles divide us on something every decent person wants."

"We need to take care of each other," he concluded. "No parent should ever have to decide if they can afford to save their child’s life. It just shouldn’t happen. Not here."

As Congress considers a major health care overhaul that could leave those like Kimmel's son vulnerable, his emotional message has the power to change everything.

"We need to take care of each other. No parent should ever have to decide if they can afford to save their child’s life. It just shouldn’t happen. Not here."

As Kimmel said through tears, this isn't about him or his son, but those less financially fortunate. It's a truly must-watch piece of TV.

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Monday, May 1, 2017

Lisa Kudrow dished on an odd form of sexism she encountered on a press tour.

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It's been two decades since the cult classic film, "Romy and Michele's High School Reunion," premiered on the big screen. Yet actor Lisa Kudrow still (not-so-fondly) remembers an odd bit of sexism she encountered doing press for its release.

Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images.

In a roundtable discussion celebrating the movie's 20th birthday with HuffPost and several of the film's stars and executives, Kudrow dished on an obnoxious pattern she spotted all those years ago: men making the film about them.

Kudrow said (emphasis added):

"It was funny doing press for this. Certain men, especially the ones who had talk shows, would say, 'I liked this movie because it wasn't bashing men.' And I thought, 'Well, that's great, except no one was talking about men. They didn't even get into the conversation. It's about two girls. How did you insert yourself into this? We weren't talking about men.'"

These unnamed male TV talk show hosts weren't celebrating the film because it was hilarious and well-written (though it was). They didn't praise it for lightheartedly serving up some valuable life lessons about growing older in your 20s (though it did). They told Kudrow they liked "Romy and Michele" because a movie centered around a fierce female friendship starring two women ... didn't bash men?

Male characters were certainly not at the heart of "Romy and Michele's High School Reunion" — so making the film's treatment of men a cornerstone to liking it is weird at best and kinda, sorta sexist at worst. It's not all about guys, people.

The phenomenon of men finding ways to always make things about them is one that many women aside from Kudrow have noticed. "Parks and Recreation" parodied it brilliantly in an episode poking fun at a "men's rights activists," when one "meninist" was upset that men weren't at the center of a discussion on feminism: "Can we have one conversation about feminism where men get to be in charge?"

GIFs via "Parks and Recreation."

What's more, suggesting the female-led comedy was unique simply because it didn't hate on half the population perpetuates the false notion that anything feminist or female-driven is inherently anti-men. Feminism is not anti-male — feminism helps men too.

I'm not sure which talk show hosts Kudrow had in mind when she dished to HuffPost, but I'm hoping they've raised their interview standards since 1997.

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These Teacher Appreciation Week tributes are ridiculously heartwarming.

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It's Teacher Appreciation Week, and students, parents, and administrators all across America are stepping up to honor the people who devote their careers to enriching minds and shaping lives.

Educators from Maine to Alaska walked into their schools to find their desks, doors, and hallways covered with messages of love, support, and thanks.

The tributes were about as lovely — and creative — as you'd expect.

Some teachers were showered with gifts.

Others were showered with ... nachos.

Some students upped their fruit game.

And others upped their decoration game ... like these fourth-graders in Wisconsin.

Kids at a Las Vegas school honored their teachers with a dance routine:

A North Carolina school created a Walk of Fame for its star educators.

"I felt super special," says Emily Francis, an ESL teacher.  "Reading every teacher's names made me feel part of a team making a difference and changing lives."

Students from a Missouri elementary school went classic and delivered flowers to their teachers.

"A parent stood at the door and gave each kid a flower as they walked in, after they had already delivered an empty 'vase' (popcorn bucket) to each of us before the day started," says Jen Bearden, a first-grade teacher at the school. "I was then greeted with 21 smiles and thank-yous to begin my week."

And a Baltimore-area school won the day by treating its teachers to the greatest gift of all: free pizza.

Meanwhile, hundreds of adults posted on Twitter to pay tribute to the educators who shaped their lives:

Americans clearly appreciate their teachers — but as a country, we sometimes have a funny way of showing it.

A 2016 study published by the Economic Policy Institute found that public school teachers earn 17% less than other college-educated professionals on average.

Teacher salaries have actually decreased since the mid-'90s, when adjusted for inflation, despite them working 10+ hour days, in many cases.

Truly acknowledging our teachers' centrality in shaping our lives and the lives of our children should mean paying them what they're worth and helping them do their jobs effectively.

That means supporting teachers' right to a strong union and supporting their efforts to negotiate higher salaries. It can also mean donating classroom supplies, which many teachers have to provide themselves, or volunteering in your local school.

For next Teacher Appreciation Week, it's on us to help give America's educators the best gifts of all: support in the classroom, adequate time off, and a fair wage.

Though ... I'm sure they'd appreciate the free pizza again too.

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A senator's victim-blaming comments sparked a tutu-powered protest in Wyoming.

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How a hospice worker helped this family through their tough time.

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When Christine Powers was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1995, she took it in stride.

No one would have blamed her if she had complained, but that wasn't her way.

Christine in New York City. All photos via Gerry Powers, used with permission.

It was the same thing when Christine was diagnosed with malignant skin cancer in 2000.

Even when the cancer reappeared later, seven years after being cancer-free, she kept her composure. That time, the cancer had spread to her brain. After multiple operations and a multi-year battle, it was clear the cancer was terminal, so her family opted to get Christine hospice care.

For anyone not familiar with it, the term "hospice" can seem like it carries some mysterious and scary connotations, but it actually refers to a type of medical and emotional care for people in the last stages of a terminal illness. It helps them and their families manage the end of life with as much compassion as possible by focusing on the quality of life instead of continuing often painful treatments to prolong it.

Samantha Lee is one of the hospice aids who helped care for Christine in her last years. 

"Christine was the youngest patient I ever had," Samantha says. "I was in love with that family so much."

The Powers family.

Hospice nurses and aides try to ensure a patient isn't in pain and help them — as much as possible — live their final days with dignity.

When Samantha helped take care of Christine, she came to the house five days a week, four hours at a time. She would cook, wash clothes, run errands, talk with Christine, and then work with her to try to keep her energy and mood up. She helped her do some exercises, and she encouraged her to do one major project a day to keep her spirits up.

"Our home aides knew Christine really, really well," Gerry Powers, Christine's husband, fondly recalls.

Gerry and Christine Powers.

And they were with her until the end, making her as comfortable as possible and the family as cared for as possible.

"You can be intellectually prepared for a loss, if someone in your life is declining," Gerry says. "But I don't think you’re ever really emotionally prepared when it happens. That’s the thing."

Samantha says people's eyes get big when she tells them she's a hospice worker, caring for patients at the end of their lives.

"They'll say, 'Oh, you’re a hospice aide? Wow, must be hard. Why do you like that?'" she mimics over the phone.

But you can tell by her voice just how much she loves her job. She says she's grateful that she can be there to help the patients and their loved ones through this difficult time.

"[This job] changed me around," she says. "It made me more soft on the inside, more compassionate and humbled."

One thing Samantha has learned from her work is the importance of having conversations about death and dying early on.

It's not an easy thing to do, but talking openly about death can bring some comfort to the end of life.

Especially in Western countries, talking about death is kind of taboo and invokes anxiety and fear in many of us. But if a loved one dies without ever having shared their end-of-life wishes, it can add extra stress and confusion during crisis mode.

"You have one family member that feels that this is not the way to live, that [the loved one] should go," says Samantha. "Then you have the other family member that wants to hold on."

She says that if people start conversations about what they want when they get to the end, then it shouldn't be a problem when the time actually comes. Family members will know exactly what they need to do and be able to spend more time focusing on their loved one and taking care of themselves.

Gerry and Christine.

Samantha says that her work as a hospice worker has also given her a new perspective on life and death.

"I look at life much different," she says.

"It really doesn't make sense to be so angry and have a lot of hatred in your heart because nobody knows when their time is up."

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Friday, April 28, 2017

Why it's illegal for Christian bakers to refuse to bake gay wedding cakes. Explained.

A funny, concise three-minute explainer video about gay wedding cakes and the law.

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Say, hypothetically, you go to a bakery to order your wedding cake.

Imagine you are Christian. And the bakery specializes in wedding cakes. Particularly satanic wedding cakes, but they make them for atheist and Buddhist weddings too, on occasion. And you happen to love the way their devil's food cake tastes, and you'd like them to make one for your Christian wedding. And then the satanic baker says, "I'm sorry, but it's against my beliefs to make a wedding cake for Christian weddings. Good day! Hail Satan!"

You'd be upset, right? (Along with being confused with the whole "Hail Satan" thing.)

Now imagine you are gay. And a Christian baker says making you a wedding cake is against their beliefs. Well, you don't have to imagine. Because it really happens. On occasion. And then the courts have to weigh in and shut that down.

But what about freedom of speech? Or freedom of religion? Or artistic freedom? What then?

John Corvino's hilarious new video has answers to all your concerns about the rights of wedding cake bakers.

Along with being chair of the philosophy department at Wayne State University, John has a history of hilariously explaining, for example, why you can't marry your kitchen appliances. In the below video, he explains why he can't discriminate against his conservative students, why a Kosher bakery can refuse to make you a bacon cake, and why you can't own a bakery where all the bakers are nude.

(Make sure to watch the whole video, there's comedy after the credits.)

Good luck with all your baking. Please wear clothes when you do it.

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John Corvino has written several books, including, most recently, "Debating Religious Liberty and Discrimination." He does not own a nude bakery.



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These teachers haven't gotten raises in 4 years. So they took over the NFL Draft.

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Playing host to the 2017 NFL Draft set the city of Philadelphia back a pretty penny.

The NFL Draft crowd in Philadelphia. Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

Bringing the massive event to town cost about half a million dollars, which doesn't sound like much until you factor in another $5 million or so in private funding the city worked to secure. Plus all the labor and logistics to put on a spectacle that attracted over 70,000 people its first night.

On top of that, the NFL itself is shelling out about $20 million more.

Most of the city — which is a big football town — is pretty excited about the whole thing.

But there's one group that has every good reason not to be.

Public school teachers in Philadelphia have been trying for years to negotiate a new contract. To them, the draft hoopla is a slap in the face.

And a bunch of them wanted to let City Hall know exactly how they felt about it.

They raised $2,500 for a special, uh, "welcoming banner" to fly over the draft stage.

Image via Hobbes579/Reddit.

The banner reads, "City hall (hearts) sports but hates our teachers."

George Bezanis, a teacher in the district and one of the organizers behind the effort, told NBC Philadelphia poor pay and instability has led many teachers to leave the district.

In fact, Philly teachers haven't received raises in four years or more.

All the turmoil, he says, is hurting students.

Photos of the banner went viral on social media and inspired a massive response from teachers, parents, and citizens across the country.

The three-day NFL Draft will likely be a huge boon to the Philadelphia economy.

Last year's event in Chicago reportedly netted about $81 million in tourism spending, so it's easy to see why the current administration is excited to host.

But in a time where billionaire sports owners make fans pay for their own stadiums, don't Philadelphia's teachers deserve their own slice of the pie?

Or better yet, don't our kids?

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