I've always felt very uncomfortable with Planned Parenthood, but I think it's important to have their backs now. Mainly, I have heard that they don't pay their staff very well. And The people I know who are upper-middle-class to rich Democrats who give significant sums to philanthropy like to give to them.

It's Absolutely necessary to have them as an abortion provider. It's always kind of bothered that people talk about them as a great resource for cancer screening for uninsured women as a way of de-emphasizing abortion and contraception. Because, if you get a Pap smear there or get referred for a mammogram, they are not equipped to help you get follow up care.

If the Globe's Spotlight Team did this, I would be more likely to believe that it wasn't a hit piece. I'm suspicious of the Times. However, I also heard that Lena Wen did a bad job there.

But I know of well-off women who chose the Mass Planned Parenthood clinic for abortions despite the Catholic protestors. There's a private clinic in Brookline nearby.

For more bias analysis, author's profile. I'm a little fatigued, so this can totally also be an open thread.

I am mostly aware of Katie Benner 9author) with regard to her work on DOJ (late in Trump's first term I think, maybe some into Biden). My recollection is that she was not as good as their best legal reporter--Charlie Savage by far--but somewhat better than when hacks like Swan, Schmidt or Haberman had stories in that area, and better than the average NYT political reporter. I did find this one braindead comment from her in a reddit AMA (so a maybe a bit unfair). Re: resisting arrest in hte context of Eric Garner's death.

" I think it's reasonable for a person to expect to face consequences for resisting arrest. But a problem arises if death is routinely the consequence for resisting arrest -- or even for not resisting! -- no matter the circumstances.

Skimmed the article, and it would take more for me to really form an opinion. There does seem to be some mismanagement and questionable choices--some of it in how it is organized nationally versus locally.

But little is mentioned of the horrible and hostile environment under which they are operating. Spend to try to better the environment, or provide the best care under the circumstances; not an easy call.

Talking to my friend who's been involved with the local affiliate her reaction is:

1) I'm not familiar with most of these stories.
2) I believe they are generally true and reflect badly on the people involved.
3) The article appears to cherry-pick stories from across the country.
4) It sounds like the AZ affiliate has real problems.
5) This is why I always encourage people to donate to the local affiliate rather than the national organization. The national organization is fairly disconnected from most of the immediate problems of providing care.

4. Savage was interviewed on NPR today and he was great. It shouldn't be as extraordinary as it is for a journalist to talk straightforwardly and professionally about what is happening.

6: As a Southern New England person (relatively flush), I sort of feel like my donation could beat best be spent on a gift to Northern New England (8 mill deficit).

I decided on "insane hit piece" by the seventh paragraph, and nothing I saw later in the article changed my mind.

The lack of resources is startling: Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Planned Parenthood has enjoyed a fund-raising boom, with $498 million in donations that year. But little of it goes to the state affiliates to provide health care at clinics. Instead, under the national bylaws, the majority of the money is spent on the legal and political fight to maintain abortion rights.

"Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022" should be the first words of every news article that mentions abortion, not a subordinate clause in the seventh paragraph. This country's health care system is fucked and abortion and other reproductive rights are fucked even in that context. As far as I can tell, every anecdote in the article could be caused by one of those two things rather than PP's management or policies in particular, and the legal/political side of Planned Parenthood is doing more to change that than anyone else. They're failing, but so is literally every sane compassionate person in the country at the moment.

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Oh my lord. One of my favorite students is a math major and also works fulltime on the custodial staff. Earlier this morning, the big metal 300 lb bucket on a bobcat detached and hit him on the head on the way down. (It also landed partially on a pole they were working on, so he wasn't crushed.)

He stopped by to ask if he could delay taking the test. I said of course, and asked him if he can go rest. He said, no, he still has to work. THEY DIDN'T SEND HIM HOME FOR THE DAY?!! He went to urgent care, and they said it wasn't a concussion, although I'm not clear how they can be so sure. He's got a terrible headache and said his thinking is a little muddled.

He did fill out workman's comp, and he humored me as I implored him to take it very seriously, and to take care of his one brain.

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10. Good Lord! He should go to an ED (to see a physician and not an NP or PA) and say, a 300# piece of construction equipment feel on my head, I have a terrible headache, and my thinking is muddied. Nothing more need be said.

It's come up before where his department is treating him like a staff person with extra obligations, as opposed to how work-study students get treated as students first. Which is totally understandable - it's literally what he is.

But it means that as his advisor, he has not wanted me to reach out and connect with them (say to problem-solve on scheduling issues) the way I might if it were a student working on campus. Right now I want to reach out to the academic VP, but I'm refraining because I would not want to do so without his permission, and I doubt he'd say yes.

Workers comp sucks in MA because you get less money for missed work than you would on regular disability.

Surprised the employer is nit more worries about liability

I sent him an email encouraging him to go to the ER.