Sorry To Be The One To Spoil Super Bowl Sunday

"With tomorrow’s Super Bowl demanding our attention, I thought it an appropriate time to point out another way billionaires have been siphoning off our tax dollars into their bank accounts: sports stadiums. And if we don’t play ball, they’ll take our favorite teams away.

"Ever notice how there never seems to be enough money to build public infrastructure like mass transit lines and better schools? And yet, when a multi-billion-dollar sports team demands a new stadium, our local governments are happy to oblige."

Click on the link below for one reason I have lost much of my enthusiasm for Big Time sports:

The Sports Stadium Scam

Infrastructure: Then & Now

"On this episode of Now & Then, 'The Human Toll of Infrastructure,' Heather and Joanne discuss the historical precedents for President Biden’s infrastructure proposals. What role did river infrastructure play in spurring the Constitutional Convention? What was the revolutionary impact of the Transcontinental Railroad and President Eisenhower’s championing of the Interstate highway system? What were the consequences of the Nixon administration’s veto of national childcare legislation? And turning to today, how does the congressional wrangling over Biden’s plans reflect a long-standing debate over the role that the government should play in how Americans connect to one another?"

Click on the link below to better understand the issues around this topic that have been ignored in the USA for too long:

The Human Toll of Infrastructure

Infrastructure Includes Public Health

"The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed fundamental flaws in the provision of health care across our nation and exacerbated the tremendous differences in health outcomes tied to race, income and other demographic factors." (link)

"Public health infrastructure provides communities, states, and the Nation the capacity to prevent disease, promote health, and prepare for and respond to both acute (emergency) threats and chronic (ongoing) challenges to health. Infrastructure is the foundation for planning, delivering, evaluating, and improving public health. (link)

"Public health infrastructure provides the necessary foundation for all public health services—from vaccinations to chronic disease prevention programs to emergency preparedness efforts. (link)

"Public health providers across the spectrum, from individual physicians to community clinics and hospitals, are realizing that treating food insecurity and poor nutrition as a health issue can lead to better health outcomes for patients, improvements in community health, and cost savings." (link)

Infrastructure: It Is More Than Things

"Researchers concerned with academic-achievement gaps have begun to study, with increasing interest and enthusiasm, a set of personal qualities—often referred to as noncognitive skills, or character strengths—that include resilience, conscientiousness, optimism, self-control, and grit. These capacities generally aren’t captured by our ubiquitous standardized tests, but they seem to make a big difference in the academic success of children, especially low-income children."

Presently in the USA, there is a political and economic discussion regarding investment for infrastructure. While the Democrats want to expand the definition of infrastructure to include lifting up those who are disadvantaged, the Republicans have a more narrowed view (surprise, surprise).

Click on the link below for an expansive look at a bed-rock problem that is poorly addressed in society presently:

How to Teach Students Resilience