Rape insurance? It's now the law in Michigan

Judge's tools

Henry Lee Jones---After years spent trying to convince the public that the life of every fetus (even those originating from rape or incest) was at the very heart of their moral concerns, Michigan's Republican legislators on Wednesday decided that the opportunity to profit from the abortion of fetuses trumps any moral concerns.

The Michigan (Republican dominated) Legislature  passed a bill last Wednesday that would prohibit private insurance anywhere in the state from covering abortions, unless a woman's life is in danger. The Huffington Post reports that this measure (which takes effect in March-2014) called the "Abortion Insurance Opt-Out-Act", will force both women and employers to purchase a separate abortion rider (rape insurance) if they want the abortion procedure covered in cases of rape and or incest. 

Some Democratic women legislators became extremly emotional during Wednesday's debate as they told personal horror stories of miscarriages and abortions. Said Senate Minority Leader Gretchen Whitmer(D),"This tells women who are raped.....that they should have planned ahead for it; make no mistake this is anything but a citizens initiative. It's a special interest groups perverted dream come true." Citing the Guttmacher Institute, The New York Times reports that 80 percent of national private insurance plans currently cover abortions. The Guttmacher Institute also reports that eight other states have already passed laws similar to Michigans "Abortion Insurance Opt-out-Act,"but they also add that Michigan is only the second state to actually make available, rape insurance.

Salon's Katie McDonough, in her report called the law "despicable". For the "Right to Life in Michigan" anti-abortion group, the second time was the charm. They tried to pass this same law last year, but Govenor Rick Snider vetoed it. But backed by dubious financiers and using "back door" tactics, the group collected 300,000 voter signatures on a petition this year and forced a second vote on the measure. After passing both chambers, the bill automatically becomes law and nullifies any veto from the Govenor. Being a former Michigander myself, I can tell you that the opposition does have a small "window of opportunity" to gather enough voter signatures to bring this measure to a public vote.

US, UK failing education, but here's the #1 way to improve it

Education

In 2010 the US ranked 14^th in the world education rankings of 15-year-olds, and the UK ranked 26^th. At the time folks worried about the drop in education in these developed countries. But have they improved and if not, what can be done to change these figures?

2012 rankings shows the US falling further behind at 36^th in ranking, with the UK at 26 again, except in science where teens scored above average.

While countries develop new techniques, teaching strategies and ideas for solving the problems in education, there is one area needing attention that could make a difference.

When was the last time you as a parent, grandparent or representative adult figure in a young person's life somewhere read an entire book, attended a classic play or played music of special quality from the great composers? A check of local adults in the Portland, Oregon area, at random, found out of 20 adults surveyed, only six had read an entire book and two had played classical music or attended a play.

Huffington Post found 28% of adults in the United States had not read a book in an entire year. But Slate also observes that most people don't even read an entire article online but simply skim through it. Many writers maintain that few people appear to read an entire article, even though they comment on social media, like Facebook, under a title link.Is that because it is more difficult to read online? Newspapers are dying, experts remind us, because of lack of interest in print media.

With the instant communication and technological temptations associated with social media, finding the time to read, study, converse and interact with others in a learning and growing situation appears to be more and more difficult for many people. Most people maintain they don't have time to do those things folks did in past generations as part of family and community life.

Teenagers watch their parents and other adults sitting for hours in front of television sets watching reality shows and television news mostly centering on politics. Enjoying a good book or an educational program can be a rare enough happening that many adolescents have few examples of anything other than what they themselves are doing, interacting socially on Internet media platforms and watching television reality shows and movies. Education is seen as terminal rather than a life-long and enjoyable process.

Complacency and apathy have become the adversaries of education. Those who have more in many cases lack incentive to improve, to look to the future, and to instill in young people the quest for knowledge.

Children learn what they observe from others. The first, and most important, solution to the problems of education rests with those who offer examples. So in changing educational systems, folks need to look within themselves for what they can do to change the direction of young people so that education becomes the goal of everyone.