When Obama speaks to the nation (and Congress) about health care tonight, he needs to insist on a big and comprehensive plan that includes a genuine public option: “Medicare for all.” JOHN NICHOLS will talk about what we want from Obama tonight. John is Washington correspondent for The Nation and he writes “The Beat” blog at TheNation.com.
Also: “THE LONG SIXTIES” – TOM HAYDEN argues that the movements of the sixties achieved deep reforms that made Obama’s election possible. Obama, he says, in a “pure child” of the sixties – today caught between the social movements that propelled him to the presidency and the forces maintaining the present structures of power. A commitment to the sixties goals of peace, justice and the environment could make Obama a great president. Tom’s new book is THE LONG SIXTIES: From 1960 to Barack Obama.
Disasters can be “a door back into paradise, the paradise in which we are who we hope to be, do the work we desire, and are each our sister’s and brother’s keeper.” That’s the startling argument REBECCA SOLNIT makes; her new book is A PARADISE BUILT IN HELL: The Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disaster. I will be in conversation with Rebecca tonight/Wed. in the L.A. Public Library ALOUD Series, 7pm, downtown at 5th and Flower streets. Make a reservation HERE.
