Protesting
is good for your health.
A new study by the University of Sussex says
protesting and taking part in changing the laws are good
for you. People who get involved in campaigns, strikes
and political demonstrations experience an improvement
in psychological well-being, the study says, helping
them overcome stress, pain, anxiety and depression.
There's plenty to protest about today. One or two
issues could fill up any free time you are lucky enough
to have.
Most Americans are juggling some combination of
working two jobs, going to school and taking care of
children or aging parents, not to mention taking care of
themselves. Anyone who isn't part of the upper crust is
fighting a battle.
Minorities now include middle-class, white America.
Pension funds are disappearing. Small-business owners
are working 90 or more hours a week to keep from having
to hire much-needed help. Government-funded programs for
people with disabilities are being slashed, along with
disability benefits. Veterans are becoming the largest
segment of the homeless population.
Bill Moyers, former host of PBS news show
"NOW," has compared the current economic
situation with the Gilded Age of feudal Europe, where
the gap between the rich and poor was similar. Moyers is
not exaggerating. Our country is moving backward
economically, spiritually and morally.
Former President Eisenhower used to think that
members of any political party who wanted to end the
social programs of the New Deal were small in number
and, frankly, stupid. How ironic it is his beloved
Republican Party - and quite a few Democrats - who are
the ringleaders in the rise of another Gilded Age.
One example of this is the recent court decision
against the tobacco companies. The U.S. Justice
Department originally was seeking $130 billion from the
industry to pay for stop-smoking programs, in return for
the years of the industry's false claims that smoking
did no harm. Instead, the award was reduced to $10
billion.
Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey suggested that
Justice Department officials with ties to the tobacco
industry might have grown uncomfortable with a large
financial demand, as part of the government's case
against the companies. The tobacco company lawyers were
stunned.
There is no doubt the executive branch is overrun
with religious fanatics with huge bank accounts
influencing whoever gets in their way. There is no doubt
Congress is overrun with corporate lobbyists with deep
pockets trying to pass, or stop, any law or regulation
they desire. There is no doubt the working class is
working beyond its capacity and cannot put food on the
table or see a doctor.
An Ohio woman told Moyers, "Everyday life pulls
families apart." Moyers' comment on this profound
statement was, "Think about it: Our country, the
richest and most powerful nation in the history of the
human race - a place where `everyday life pulls families
apart.'"
Take a stand - and do something good for your health.
You can e-mail Barbara J. McKee at chairgrrl@chairgrrl.com.
Her column runs on Tuesdays.
