Like much of the "says one thing, does another" reporting these days, this piece is a little bit naive. Can you believe that about the NYT? Here's why I say so: Health-care reform was a central issue in the Obama campaign. If the candidate was sincere, of course he will, as president, take an active interest in how the legislation is shaped. His public stance of letting Congress work out the details is only realistic, because at this point, that's where the necessary votes are. The writer isn't very sophisticated about how negotiations take place. Obama's interest is in improving the current situation, not in holding out for every desirable goal and possibly never achieving anything. Didn't another recent White ... More »
John Hopkins
Member (since February 2009)
I'm a writer and editor with a keen interest in making cities healthier and more livable. Currently very active as an advocate for bicyclists and walkers.
About John
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Green Mobility Network
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www.greenmobilitynetwork.org
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Oct 30, 2009 - 1:52 PM PDT
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Oct 30, 2009 - 1:52 PM PDT
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John reviewed this story - Aug 17, 2009
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John reviewed this story - Aug 13, 2009
I like the article's headon approach to Grassley's deceit. But any solid report on this counseling issue should at least paraphrase the relevant part of the legislation. It also should point out that such counseling has been widely recommended by investment advisers, estate planners and family physicians for the past decade. This is so even if the HP has done both in previous articles.
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John reviewed this story - Aug 13, 2009
Excellent reporting! He dug to the bottom of the controversy, using an authoritative source who cannot be accused of being an Obama partisan.
As the oldest of my siblings, I had to lead an agonizing conference as we decided whether to pursue our mother's wishes or her doctor's conflicting recommendation for extraordinary medical procedures. Counseling while Mom was still healthy, and a directive to guide us all, would have been kinder to everyone -- especially her. It saddens and angers me to see the fear-mongering by Palin and Grassley.
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John starred this story - Jun 19, 2009
John reviewed this story - Apr 21, 2009
The other reviewers correctly point out the unfairness of the article and the headline. Both imply presidential favoritism, even though the article eventually goes on to contradict the suggestion that Illinois somehow had an inside track. It's probably not right to blame the reporter for the headline. In most shops, an editor would have written that. But the headline does reflect how the article started out, so it's not surprising to see that. Since Illinois is the fifth largest state in population, it's not surprising to me that it would rank high in the number of stimulus projects. It would have been appropriate to mention that. Florida, at fourth largest, and Ohio, at 7th largest, will have had sizable bundles of ... More »
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John posted and reviewed and starred this story - Mar 4, 2009
This and earlier hard-nosed reporting helped the community look more closely at the likely cost of this high-stakes venture.
Understand that I am not a disinterested observer. I worked for the newspaper for 20 years and know the writers of this report and some of the earlier ones. As a Miamian, though, I am grateful that my daily paper will spend the energy and initiative to dig into what could be a hugely costly public investment.
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John posted and reviewed and starred this story - Mar 4, 2009
John posted and reviewed and starred this story - Mar 4, 2009
This and earlier hard-nosed reporting helped the community look more closely at the likely cost of this high-stakes venture.
Understand that I am not a disinterested observer. I worked for the newspaper for 20 years and know the writers of this report and some of the earlier ones. As a Miamian, though, I am grateful that my daily paper will spend the energy and initiative to dig into what could be a hugely costly public investment.
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John posted and reviewed and starred this story - Mar 4, 2009
John reviewed this story - Mar 1, 2009
Yes, it's definitely quality journalism. It responsibly addresses a genuine public issue, and sets out a couple of new ideas for examination.
There definitely needs to be a new business model to support the reportage that we have found in daily newspapers until now. I do not exaggerate to say that democracy depends on it.
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John reviewed this story - Feb 14, 2009
The editors were smart to break the story into short units. It let the several writers focus on their own topics and provided a piece that someone in a hurry could scan for the field they were most interested in. The traditional narrative structure might have had comparable reporting, but the smart organization made this piece very user-friendly.
I hate the thought of spending this much money, this fast, but the preponderance of discussion that I've seen convinces me that it has to be done. It's lamentable that one party made it such a partisan discussion.
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John reviewed this story - Feb 9, 2009
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John reviewed this story - Feb 9, 2009
It's remarkable that the state school superintendent would have no comment on this. Did the report come out that late on Friday afternoon? Didn't the academics give the state a heads-up about what was coming?
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John reviewed this story - Feb 9, 2009
John reviewed this story - Feb 5, 2009
Libraries are sometimes overlooked as part of our educational system, but they are especially important because they serve people even when they are not enrolled in a classroom.
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Nobody could argue with Grassley's assertion that end-of-life planning should be done years ahead of that crisis point. But as one who had to help make such decisions with inadequate forethought, I am all for any incentive to this counseling. Sen. Grassley is fear-mongering at best -- and to all appearances is carefully treading just short of what he knows would be an outright lie.