I know that most of you don’t spend time in front of the television during the 6 pm local news. It’s not hard to figure why. With all of the various things you are managing and juggling in your life, the local news just doesn’t rise to the top of the list. Any of us who do watch the local news know exactly which age group are the typical viewers. All you have to do is watch the commercials and you know they are talking to us old folks. Watch with that in mind one time and you will see what I mean.
But for this class you need to work against your natural instincts. While you have a lot of sources for your information, you live in Altanta, the capitol of Georgia. The gold dome is here and the local news talks about what is happening there. And remember, you only have a couple of months to try and catch up. So the local news is a great resource of what is moving in the legislature and what isn’t. What are the folks in the media talking about? What advocate has managed to get their cause in front of the public? Who has managed to get that problem stream moving along so that their cause is defined as a problem in need of a solution? The news can help you figure that out.
And if you listen carefully to the local news you can also hear the rushing of that political stream. Let’s take last night, for instance. There was a story on the local news about Ava’s bill. This legislation would require insurance companies to cover autism treatments. Here is the first piece about the legislation.
Now here is another piece about the legislation. Can you hear the rustling of the political stream? Who do you think contributes to this legilsator’s campaign?
So here we see the problem stream – a mother who is an advocate for her duaghter and other children with autism. The policy stream, where the solution to this problem is to get the treatment that can make a difference covered by insurance, and the political stream, where the insurance company is not about to let their supported legislators say yes to this bill.
Force yourself to watch the local news….it will pay off in this course.
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My Godson was diagnosed with Autism when he was a toddler and I have seen firsthand the struggles that he has gone through as well as his mother with obtaining effective treatments programs for him. His mother has come across so many treatments and therapies that have been proven effective, but his insurance will not cover it. Even with his schooling, he isn’t getting the proper focus that is needed and is placed in classes with students with an array of different disorders. It is frustrating when you have proven statistics and evidence based practice programs that are showing the effectiveness of certain treatments for individuals on the Autism spectrum; however these interventions are not allotted to some due to factors and players in the political stream. Even in the article, Governor Deal made provisions so state employee’s insurance plans would cover certain treatments and therapies for Autism! You have all of this evidence showing that these programs are working, however legislators do not want to upset certain supporters, even if the benefit out ways those ties. When does the betterment or the overall good for society trump political affiliations and connections?
nice artikel sir Thank you