October 6, 2023
Farm bill, childhood evictions, abortion chatbot, and more!
******SUBMITTING YOUR ACTION IDEAS TO ROGAN’S LIST ******
We’ve had a number of the Rogan’s List family (now 12,000 strong!) send in action items in the last few weeks - and some really important ones at that! So we’re setting up a “tip line” you all can use if you have ideas or submissions for us: roganslisttips@gmail.com. Please don’t hesitate to email and pass on your suggestions, we look forward to hearing from you!
Contact all members of Congress:
By phone: (202) 224-3121
By email: democracy.io
By US mail: Representatives / Senators
By fax: Representatives / Senators
By Resistbot: Resist.bot
Contact White House or other federal agencies:
FARM BILL REAUTHORIZATION STYMIED
From a reader: The essential Farm Bill reauthorization is already behind schedule and now with the current upheaval in the House, another hurdle has been added to getting it passed. The National Governors Association outlines its challenging priorities to meet growing needs. Family farmers, ranchers, consumers, and communities all benefit from a strong and resilient farm and food system. The Farm Bill, which is rewritten and voted on by Congress every five years, includes nearly $1 trillion in spending. It is a comprehensive piece of legislation that covers a wide variety of issues including conservation, international agricultural programs, trade, nutrition, and more. Nutrition programs alone comprise 76% of the Farm Bill’s total spending.* Let’s tell our MoCs that we want them to get working on completing this important bill that is already overdue. We can also use this link from Midwest Franciscan Justice Promoters to write letters to our senators.
ADDRESSING CHILDHOOD EVICTIONS
A new study published by the National Academy of Sciences finds that “each year, 2.9 million children are affected by an eviction filing, and the typical eviction case filed in America involves one child.” Moreover, “despite making up only 18.6% of all renters, Black Americans account for 51.1% of those affected by eviction filings and 43.4% of those evicted.” Eviction puts children at higher risk of neurodevelopmental and other health problems. Let’s tell our Members of Congress and our state legislators that we want this terrible situation addressed in the form of more affordable housing, plentiful, accessible housing assistance, legal representation for those facing eviction, and policies that decrease America’s income/wealth disparities.
SAFE, PRIVATE ABORTION INFORMATION FOR ALL STATES AVAILABLE THROUGH NEW CHATBOT
People in need of abortion information in all 50 states now have a new tool to help them, Charley the chatbox. Co-founded by former Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards and the former head of Planned Parenthood’s digital department Tom Subak, in partnership with INeedAnA.com, Plan C, and the Miscarriage + Abortion (M+A) Hotline, Charley provides accurate, accessible, and confidential abortion information to people who need it. Users can learn about different abortion methods, where and how to access them, what is legal in their state, along with local medical, legal and community support. Available in English and Spanish, Charley can also help people in restrictive states to get travel information, obtain FDA approved pills by mail, and find low cost, or sometimes free, ways to buy the needed pills. Users need only submit their zip code and last period date, and conversations are deleted hourly. Data is never shared or tracked and using private or “incognito” browsing can add an extra layer of security when needed. We can learn more about chatbot Charley’s information for people in need of abortions here, then share this link with our friends on social media. If our organization is interested in hosting Charley, we can also email Charley@berlinrosen.com.
PREVENT AIRPLANE COLLISIONS
A New York Times investigation (described in this no-paywall summary by Business Insider) has found that near-miss collisions between airplanes happen multiple times a week, and the main culprit is the shortage of air traffic controllers. Let’s tell our Members of Congress to draft and pass legislation to remedy this situation immediately, before a disaster happens.
MEDIA BIAS CHART NOW AN APP
Rogan’s List has long recommended use of Ad Fontes’ Media Bias Chart as a tool for identifying a source’s bias. Knowing the bias of a source can help us determine if it is reliable. Charts like this, with transparent methodology, can be useful. It is now available as an app both in the Apple Store and the Google Play Store. Let’s check it out.
STATE-SPECIFIC ACTIONS
MI - DOMESTIC VIOLENCE GUN LAWS
On Tuesday, Michigan House and Senate committees voted to advance bills S.471/H.B.4946 and S.472/H.B.4945, which prohibit anyone who has been convicted of a misdemeanor involving domestic violence to possess, use, transport, purchase, or sell a firearm or ammunition for 8 years. The links between domestic violence and femicide and familicide are extensive; women are five times more likely to be killed when their abusers have access to a firearm. Let's contact our state MoCs and ask them to support these bills. We can personalize this form letter from Progress Michigan to contact our state senators.
CORRECTIONS AND UPDATES
The link to an article in yesterday’s List is no longer working. Here is the corrected entry. Thanks to our readers for keeping us honest!
HEALTH CARE WORKERS ON STRIKE!
Striketober rolls on! As of 6AM this morning, 75,000 workers at Kaiser Permanente are out on a three-day strike, the largest health care strike in American history. They’re protesting unfair labor practices and unsafe staffing levels at hospitals and health care facilities across the country. Let’s show them some support! If we’re near a strike location, let’s try to join them on the picket line, and we can all follow along for updates here and help them spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. We can also add our names to the growing list of supporters!
Well done -I shared the abontion segment in Healthcare Advocacy today.