100 Issues for 100 Days: #28

#28: Fiddler on the Roof

Today has been a weird day. For the past few weeks, I've been very much inside of my head. I find myself fixating on phrases.

Earlier, I watched Lions for Lambs and a quote stuck in my mind.

Nowhere have I seen such Lions led by such Lambs.

I wonder if we're all Lions being led by Lambs or if we're just a bunch of sheep.

Right now our financial system is collapsing and our government and citizens seem to be showing a lack of courage. Personally, it seems to be manifesting in my life with a severe shortage of money and a fear of the future that I haven't felt before and yet, I spent my day watching movies and television shows. I wonder if I'm not fiddling while Rome is burning all around me. And if I am, what do I do to stop it?

100 Issues for 100 Days: #21

#21: Flossy, Flossy

This morning I woke up and the first thing I saw when I turned on the television was a documentary called Youth Knows No Pain. It's a documentary made by the daughter of a plastic surgeon as she ponders the multi-billion dollar anti-aging industry which includes, injectables, creams and full-on surgery.

Although I found the documentary pretty well-rounded and it featured lots of different points of view, one thing was definitely visually apparent, even though it was unspoken: this is a White person's problem. In the entire time I watched only three of the people I saw were of color, one Black woman, one Asian male and one Latina. Now this doesn't mean I believe only White people worry about aging but there's clearly some color and class hierarchy driving this industry.

Now I could go to that old stand-by "Black don't crack" but I think essentially, cosmetics are expensive. Cosmetic surgery, even the injectables, is pretty cost prohibitive. The average price for Botox is $350-$500 per area. Even with "recession specials", cosmetic surgery is hard for the average American to afford without foregoing some other aspect of their lives. In a 2008 survey by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, they found that wile White Americans comprise 67% of the population, they account for 78% of plastic surgeries. Blacks are 13% of the population and 6% of plastic surgery patients. And the industry projected figures to drop due to the recession.

One important aspect the documentary did bring up was the fact that because health insurance is linked to our jobs, people feel the need to keep themselves looking young and vital in order to preserve their jobs and by-proxy, their health insurance. I wonder if some people of color don't worry about Botox since they are more likely to not have health insurance?

Essentially, that's what the film seemed to come down to for me. Cosmetic surgery is something you do if you have the time to worry about what you look like. And you would have the time to do that if you didn't have to worry about school loans, job security or where your next meal was coming from.

Ironically, the woman who made the documentary was the daughter of a famoous plastic surgeon who always told her she was beautiful. And although she never tried anything other than creams until she made this film, she was pretty obsessed with aging. I wonder if as a culture we've come to a point where we need something, anything to focus on and when the things around us fall into place we turn that obsessive need inward. Will my life fall into place one day and suddenly I'll find myself searching for Botox injection?

100 Issues for 100 Days

I tried really hard to write a post around my birthday about love and horoscopes but it didn't quite work out but now I've moved on and decided to do something different. A friend of mine who's a poet completed an anthology called "100 Poems for 100 Days" I've decided to do something along the same lines, 100 Issues for 100 Days. Now this can be as small as "Love and Horoscopes" (I haven't given up on that post) or as big as "Global Finance" but each day I'm going to try and tackle something different. And I am committing to 100 Issues for 100 Days, which by my count means I should be done by Nov. 24th. Let's see how it goes people.

#1 Healthcare Reform



Let's face it people. We are in the trenches. It's November 2008 again and people are yelling "Obama's a Muslim!" and "Don't change my Amurika!" It's sickening and frightening and it's sad. I'll confess, I haven't read the healthcare bill and to be perfectly honest, I'm sure there's plenty of things wrong with it. And ... this one's a biggie ... I'm not sure if I think our government can necessarily run healthcare well. BUT I do know this: I am a 26-year old woman who works two jobs and does not have health insurance and that's wrong.

There is a sickening idea that has come out of the "American dream" and that is the idea that anyone who doesn't have prosperity has not "worked hard enough". Therefore, if you don't have, it's because you didn't want to have. And if the government helps you it's because you are lesser and unworthy and "good people" have taken pity on you. The people currently opposing healthcare reform would have you believe that it's a zero-sum game and the poor are coming to take what you have. And they'll kill your grandma, give your 12-year old an abortion in the backroom of her school and anything else it takes to make it happen.

This country needs a reality check. The truth behind these allegations is vast and multi-layered but ultimately no one is seeking the truth, they're just trying to scare everyone. The ironic thing is that these people rail against terrorists but utilize the same tactics. They are stifling real debate that would make this bill the best it could be so that every citizen would come out on top, not just the rich or the insurance companies but everyone who needs and wants to lead healthy and productive lives. Because essentially that's what this comes down to lives. Like I said, I may not know everything but I know that I am a 26-year old woman who works two jobs and does not have health insurance and that's wrong.