GoodyBlog

Save The National Children's Study

We are all worried that environmental toxins may harm our children, and yet we desperately need more solid research to identify the real risks. Pediatricians, public health experts and parents have fought for years to get the National Children's Study off the ground. This groundbreaking nationwide study will follow 100,000 babies for 20 years to determine the impact of various environmental factors on their health and development—and its first findings should be available in 2010. However, President Bush has allocated no funds for the study in his FY 2009 budget. The study received $111 million in FY 2008 and planners hoped for $192 next year so that this important study could continue as planned. Please let your senator and representatives know that you want them to support funding for this crucial research.

Who Says Babies Aren't into Politics?

I really think this kid is sticking with Barack no matter what. What about your little ones? Are they all up in the election? Post your comments, email us your pictures and videos—especially your videos—and we'll post them right here as part of Parents 2008!

Paid Family Leave? Go New Jersey!

I live in New Jersey, and there's lots about the state that make me proud: Bruce Springsteen, the Sopranos, and the fact that you never have to pump your own gas!  But something happened this week that's really boosting my Jersey pride:  Our state assembly passed a law that would require companies (that employ 50 people or more.) to give workers six weeks of leave time to care for a new baby or a sick family member—and here's where it gets really good!—to pay them two-thirds of their salary—up to $524 a week.  The state Senate will consider the measure next week, and if it passes there, Governor Jon Corzine has promised that he would sign into law.  Keep your fingers crossed!  If New Jersey mandates family leave, it will be the third state in the nation to do so:  California and Washington already have similar laws.  Would you like your state to consider doing the same? Go to Parents2008 and follow the links to connect with your state representatives so you can let them know.

Stand Up For Sick Days

As we certainly know in the midst of this brutal flu season, everyone gets sick. But nearly half of private-sector workers—about 50 million people—in this country don't get any paid sick days. And nearly 100 million people don't have paid sick days to care for a sick child.  Without a doubt, being able to stay home and rest (without worrying about your paycheck) helps you get better faster.  The Healthy Families Act, now being considered in Congress, would guarantee that everyone gets seven paid sick days a year. Show your support by joining today's Online Rally For Healthy Families sponsored by the National Partnership for Women and Families.

Too Young to Vote, But Not to Care

Most days when I wake up in the morning I'll catch my son, Matthew, checking the previous night's basketball scores or baseball standings. But lately my 9-year-old has a new favorite sport: politics. Since the primary season began, he has been following the development of both major party nominations with the fervor of a pennant race. He visits 270towin.com, which shows a tentative national electoral map for 2008, along with the history of every national election dating back to George Washington's victory over John Adams in 1789). He wants to know why Mike Huckabee is staying in the Republican race when John McCain has all but clinched victory and who is winning the close race for Democratic delegates. He describes Barack Obama as being on an "eight-state winning streak." He doesn't quite know how to pronounce "caucus" (I have to hold back laughter every time he says "cow-kiss," but it's actually quite adorable), and it's hard to explain the concept of superdelegates to him (in part because, frankly, it doesn't make a lot of sense to put the fate of the nominee in the hands of the party bosses, rather than the people who actually vote for the candidates). But I have to admit, seeing him develop a sudden interest in our political system—and potential future leaders—has been a beautiful thing.
    And I'm far from the only parent who has experienced this. Spurred by the controversial 5-year-old war in Iraq and a Democratic contest that is bound to yield an historic first—either the first major-party black or woman candidate—young grade-schoolers, like their parents (who are voting in record numbers in the primaries) are showing unusual interest and passion in the 2008 election. According to msnbc.com, first-grade classes are holding straw polls to determine class favorites. Matthew's class gave the nod to Hillary (15) over Obama (11), with McCain (1) a distant third, but then we live in New York City, the bluest city in the nation.
    And while their votes don't count, kids are making their voices heard. They are asking to go in the voting booth with Mommy or Daddy, both to share in the experience and to make sure M and D vote for the right person (for the record, Matthew decided on a candidate well before I chose mine, which didn't happen until the day before the primary). They are even getting involved in the campaigns. barackobama.com has a link for kids under 12. It offers suggestions such as setting up a Kids for Obama Group and hosting an Obama house party or sleep-over (including patriotic red, white, and blue balloons and candy). The 10-year-old niece of one of our editors even manned the phone banks recently in support of her candidate, embellishing the script with her own charming personality. If your state hasn't voted yet, check out the issues of prime importance to parents at parents2008.org. And whether or not you've already submitted your ballot, upload photos to our parents.com campaign kids gallery and share your stories of your little politicos in action—wearing candidate buttons, holding flyers, cheering at rallies, etc.

Fat Super Pancake Tuesday!

It's Mardi Gras, and we all know what that means: PANCAKES!

No, I don't mean booze or beads—I mean pancakes. My wife and I have a tradition of pancakes for supper on Fat (or Shrove) Tuesday. The day is a time to "live it up" before the beginning of the penitential season of Lent.

So, how do pancakes fit into the equation of irrational exuberance? The reasons (and an excellent pancake recipe) follow below the cut.

Rock the Vote

It's Super Tuesday! (As if you could miss that with the crazy amount of news coverage.) Don't forget to vote if you're in one of the super states. Don't know where your polling place is? Use this polling place finder and then get out there!

Candidate Confusion? Decipher the Issues and Choose Your Candidate

I know we've posted about a candidate picker quiz recently, but a friend sent me Glassbooth.org, and I thought it was a good one to share.  Not only does it ask you questions, but it links to Wikipedia to give you explanations of the topics.  (And I admit, I had to learn a bit more about the Kyoto Protocol.)  It tallies your answers and gives you the percentage match to your top 3 candidates. (Unfortunately my answers produced a 3-way tie. Literally. Sigh.)  You can then click on the links that tell you why you are in strong/moderate/slight agreement or disagreement with candidates, thus furthering your understanding of where the candidates stand. 

And if you have DISH network, you can use your remote control to access DISH Decision 2008, an election portal which provides viewers with a different way to access national, state and local political info.  Very cool.  So go ahead and take the quiz during a commercial break.

Political Picker Pages

This presidential candidate compatibility quiz created by Minnesota Public Radio is relatively accurate with matching political ideology with candidate. It asks questions based upon all The Major Issues™, along with each item's importance in choosing a candidate. I wasn't surprised by my primary pick, but I found the gradation of runners up interesting.

Unrelated to primaries, but also equally neat-O (and slightly entertaining if you're into this sort of thing) is the World's Smallest Political Quiz. It breaks the current paradigm of Left vs. Right / Democrat vs. Republican by replacing that dividing line with a two-dimensional grid. The score is based on "personal issues" compared with "economic issues." Created by a  libertarian political theorist named David Nolan, the quiz has gained a wide reputation as being a more accurate predictor of political leanings.

Of course, as with anything quiz-based, Your Mileage May Vary. For instance, the "Ultimate 'What Care Bear Are You'?" quiz told me that I was Tenderheart Bear. This is completely wrong: I am clearly Grumpy Bear. So, please remember to take any quiz result with a few grains of coarse sea salt.

Hey, When Do I Get To Vote?

In all of the excitement over the early primaries (New Hampshire's up today, as I'm sure you've noticed by the huge amount of coverage) it occurred to me that I had no idea when my state's primary was! Oops. Check out this list from Project Vote Smart of each state's primary and caucus dates, and mark your calendars. If you want a little more in-depth primary info, I like this New York Times' election guide, and for a quick cheat sheet on the (still pretty big) field of candidates, try our Parents 2008 Meet the Candidates guide.