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Americans speak out in favor of the Affordable Care Act. Obama added his voice.

With a vote on a possible replacement bill looming, President Obama steps in.

With the future of health care in the U.S. on the line, people are making their voices heard — loudly.

Calls are flooding members of Congress urging them to vote against the Affordable Care Act replacement bill currently being considered by the House of Representatives. Rep. Dan Donovan (R-New York) said calls from his constituents are 1,000-to-1 against the bill.

People rally in support of the Affordable Care Act outside the Supreme Court on June 25, 2015. Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images.


Millions of people are taking action against the bill and urging Congress to save the ACA.

This morning, one more name joined the chorus: former President Barack Obama.

Obama signed the ACA into law, and on the seventh anniversary of that landmark legislation, he released a statement in its defense.

Obama delivers his farewell address on Jan. 10, 2017, in Chicago. Photo by Darren Hauck/Getty Images.

Here are seven important points Obama made that'll inspire you to call your member of Congress ahead of today's vote.

1. The days before the Affordable Care Act were rough. Really rough.

"When I took office, millions of Americans were locked out of our health care system. So, just as leaders in both parties had tried to do since the days of Teddy Roosevelt, we took up the cause of health reform."

When he took office, an estimated 45.7 million Americans were uninsured, putting them just one catastrophic event away from drowning in hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars in medical debt. Annual premium increases were skyrocketing, and something needed to be done. That something was the Affordable Care Act.

Felue Chang, newly insured under an insurance plan through the Affordable Care Act, receives a checkup in 2014. Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images.

2. Change is hard and doesn't happen overnight.

"It was a long battle, carried out in Congressional hearings and in the public square for more than a year. But ultimately, after a century of talk, decades of trying, and a year of bipartisan debate, our generation was the one that succeeded. We finally declared that in America, health care is not a privilege for a few, but a right for everybody."

Health care reform was a long time coming, and the ACA was a powerful step in the right direction. To see all that work erased would be a shame.

President Obama signs the bill into law on March 23, 2010. Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images.

3. The Affordable Care Act helped improve an unequal health care system and required compromise from both parties.

"Thanks to this law, more than twenty million Americans have gained the security and peace of mind of health insurance. Thanks to this law, more than ninety percent of Americans are insured — the highest rate in our history. Thanks to this law, the days when women could be charged more than men and Americans with pre-existing conditions could be denied coverage altogether are relics of the past."

The ideas that netted those results didn't come from any one party. For example, the individual mandate — the requirement that all Americans get health coverage, which drove down the uninsured rate — was originally a Republican idea supported by Sen. Orrin Hatch and House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Many Democrats, including Obama, were in favor of either a public option or a single-payer system, but they scrapped those ideas in the name of compromise.

People rally at the Supreme Court to support the ACA in March 2015. Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images.

4. Misinformation about the law existed before it was passed, and it thrives today. Here are the facts.

"Since the law passed, the pace of health care inflation has slowed dramatically. Prices are still rising, just as they have every year for decades — but under this law, they’ve been rising at the slowest rate in fifty years. Families who get coverage through their employer are paying, on average, thousands of dollars less per year than if costs kept rising as fast as they were before the law. ... [T]his law is no 'job-killer,' because America’s businesses went on a record-breaking streak of job growth in the seven years since I signed it."

Remember "death panels" (PolitiFact's 2009 "Lie of the Year")? The latest iteration of that sort of misinformation comes in the form of claims that the ACA is in the midst of a "death spiral," with premium costs soaring out of control.

Vice President Biden gets caught on a hot mic telling President Obama that passing the law is a "big f-ing deal." Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

5. The law is not perfect. But if Democrats, Republicans, and independents work together, we can fix its flaws.

"So if Republicans are serious about lowering costs while expanding coverage to those who need it, and if they’re prepared to work with Democrats and objective evaluators in finding solutions that accomplish those goals — that’s something we all should welcome."

The current plan being considered by Congress doesn't accomplish those goals. In fact, with a Congressional Budget Office estimate of as many as 24 million people losing coverage under the replacement plan, it would almost certainly be an unmitigated disaster that makes life harder for the majority of Americans.

Sen. Al Franken touts the positive aspects of the ACA during a March 2015 press conference. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images.

6. The Affordable Care Act is the result of everyday people making their voices heard. We need those same voices today to help protect the law.

"The Affordable Care Act is law only because millions of Americans mobilized, and organized, and decided that this fight was about more than health care — it was about the character of our country."

People protest the Trump administration's attempts to replace the ACA on January 25, 2017. Photo by David McNew/AFP/Getty Images.

7. Whether we see health care as a right or as a privilege for just a select few says a lot about who we are as a country.

"It was about whether the wealthiest nation on Earth would make sure that neither illness nor twist of fate would rob us of everything we’ve worked so hard to build. It was about whether we look out for one another, as neighbors, and fellow citizens, who care about each other’s success."

Are we the kind of country that puts people over profits? Are we able to empathize with someone who doesn't look like us, talk like us, think like us, or pray like us to ensure that they have a chance at life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? What direction we take here — whether improve the system or dismantle it — will say a lot about not only who are as a country, but who we want to be.

If that's the kind of country we want to be, then now is the time to call our members of Congress and urge them not to gut the Affordable Care Act, but to improve it.

Humor

Gen X mom reenacts 'coming home from school in the 80s' and it couldn't be more perfect

"This is why we turned out self sufficient, independent and successful."

Canva Photos

If you lived through an 80s childhood, this will send you back.

Generation X, made up of those born between 1965 and 1980, has many claims-to-fame in their younger years game. Gen X brought the world Prince and Kurt Cobain. We were The Goonies and The Breakfast Club. We took down the Berlin Wall while watching MTV.

But perhaps the most iconic thing about Gen X is our semi-feral childhoods of benign neglect. The standards of parenting and child rearing have shifted a lot in the past 40 to 50 years, as has the technological landscape that kids grow up in, so naturally, today's kids won't have the same childhoods previous generations had. But there's something particularly nostalgic about being a child of the 80s for those who lived it.


One mom nailed the experience with a video reenactment of what it was like to come home from school in the 80s.

Elizabeth Stevens (@BennettPeach on YouTube) arrives at the front door in her backpack, then pulls out a house key on a string around her neck. (Ah, the "latchkey kid" era when children were expected to come home to an empty house and let themselves in.)

Then she goes into the kitchen in her Care Bears t-shirt and finds a handwritten note—in cursive, of course—on the back of an envelope. "Working late—make your own dinner, watch your brother and the dishes better be done when I get home from bowling. – Mom"

- YouTube www.youtube.com

That's right. Mom wasn't just working late, she was also going bowling while her kids were home caring for themselves.

Then we see her washing the dishes despite barely being able to reach the faucet, even with a stool, and then her making a Gen X staple—the cinnamon-sugar and butter sandwich. On white bread, of course.

In just one minute, Stevens managed to capture the essence of so many Gen X memories, as commenters shared:

"The mom notes on an unopened bill is memories."

"Nailed it! The best thing about growing up in the '70s/'80's was being ALLOWED to grow up."

"Why this video made me almost cry?? How quiet it is inside the home. Lovely."

80s childhood, 80s, 80s nostalgia, gen x, latchkey kids, gen x nostalgia, generational differences, generational humor Wash the dishes before I get home from bowling! Photo by CDC on Unsplash

"Facts!!! No babysitter, go in the house, read the note, do the chores n not let anybody in!!!! I remember the homemade the 'cinnamon bun.'"

"70s and 80s … latch key kid here elementary, junior high and high school. we turned out self sufficient, independent and successful."

"Just so frickin on point!!! All of it from the clothes to the key on the necklace to the note. Even what you chose to do for a snack. Too good!!! The windbreaker that's memories. It's all coming back to me now lol thank you for this. You have brought a huge grin to both me and my inner child."

80s childhood, 80s, 80s nostalgia, gen x, latchkey kids, gen x nostalgia, generational differences, generational humor music video 80s GIF Giphy

"I was met with a note everyday, too. On the back of an envelope, my daily chores would be listed. If I was in trouble, I would cry as soon as I saw the note....lolol Love you momma. How I wished I could have saved those notes! They were historical treasures."

Tons of people gushed over the nostalgia of remembering those "good old days" when they were given both freedom and responsibility, with many saying kids today have no idea. One thing that might surprise the younger generations was how young the theoretical kid in this video could have been. We're not talking about young teens here—kids as young as 5 or 6 could be latchkey kids, and kids any older than that were often given responsibility for looking after younger siblings. Even official babysitting jobs could start around age 11, or sometimes even younger.

Gen X kids had learned to take care of themselves early on, which has its pros and cons. The rose-colored glasses many Gen X adults view their childhoods through can sometimes cloud the parts that were not so great about growing up in the 70s and 80s. Sure, that benign neglect resulted in resilience and independence, but for some that came at the cost of parental relationships and a sense of safety and security. We have more knowledge now about things like mental health support, parent-child attachment, and healthy relationship dynamics, and some of that learning is reflected in shifting parenting practices.

As often happens, the pendulum may have swung too far from the absent parents of the 70s and 80s to the helicopter parents of the 90s and 2000s, of course, and the "right" approach (if there is one) probably lies somewhere in the middle. But it is still fun to look back on those iconic childhood experiences with joy and humor and appreciate that they helped us become who we are today.

This article originally appeared in April. It has been updated.

Curtesy of Marcos Alberti

Watch the emotional evolution of people after 1, 2 and, 3 glasses of wine

Having a glass of wine or two isn't uncommon for adults. Casual drinking in social situations acts as a social lubricant or just a tool to help some relax. Many people who partake in a glass of wine socially may not realize the physical changes that happen since it's generally not enough alcohol to cause intoxication. However, Brazilian photographer Marco Alberti begs to differ with his newly updated photography project, which photographs people before drinking and after consuming one, two, and then three glasses of wine.

The results of his "3 Glasses Down" project, which initially started as a joke between his friends, involved the photographer taking the same four sets of photos. The before-and-after pictures, along with the story of "three glasses," went viral, reaching over one million views on Imgur in the first week. That's what inspired Alberti to start taking photos of others.

The "3 Glasses Down" project, now known as "The Wine Project," has brought the photographer success, with his photos appearing across digital and traditional media outlets. Recently, he repeated the photography projects with all new subjects, and the images are just as convincing. One glass of wine does a little more than someone may think, and three glasses of wine cause the subject of the photo and viewers to break out in a smile.

Alberti tells the BBC that when he started the original project with his friends as the subjects, he had only recently discovered wine. "I just started drinking wine a month before this project," he explains to the outlet. "I was not used to drinking wine, so I thought of this project like a tribute. I need to do a tribute to wine because I just discovered how good it is, and the first idea that I have is to take pictures of my friends drinking, so, of course, it was funny to do. It was very nice to do it."

Since his initial catapulting into the spotlight with his photos of friends, he has refined the project and travels the world to capture the effects on others. His most recent project took place in New York.

On his website, he explains the process, saying, "The first picture was taken right away when our guests have just arrived at the studio to capture the stress and the fatigue after a full day after working all day long and from also facing rush hour traffic to get here. Only then fun time and my project could begin. At the end of every glass of wine, a snapshot, nothing fancy, a face and a wall, 3 times. People from all walks of life, music, art, fashion, dance, architecture, and advertising got together for a couple of nights, and by the end of the third glass, several smiles emerged, and many stories were told."

Once people start drinking, they become a little more chatty, so it's no surprise that Alberti heard some tales from his photography subjects. However, just like anything else, drinking should be done in moderation. While some studies suggest drinking red wine in moderation may have heart and other health benefits, the Mayo Clinic reminds people that more research is needed.

"But there might be other reasons for the lower risk of heart disease in people who drink red wine in moderation. For instance, they might eat a healthier diet and be more active than those who don't drink red wine. And they might have higher incomes and better access to health care as well," says the Mayo Clinic.

They also note that it's believed that the antioxidants in red wine are the main contributing factor to the wine having health benefits. The skin on the grapes contains those antioxidants, so the Mayo Clinic suggests eating grapes in place of wine if you're not a drinker.

Photo Credit: Canva

A person stands out in a crowd.

So many of us have the desire to compartmentalize our personality traits into neat little boxes. "Oh, she's such an INFJ. Oh, he's such a Gemini." Some of it is rooted (well sort of) in psychology, such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, based loosely on Jungian ideas. Others rely on arguably less scientific data like stars and "rising signs." Humans aren't usually that simple.

That said, there's still value in understanding one's own personality and inclinations. Here's a confession: I've taken countless personality tests because I just couldn't figure out if I was an extrovert or an introvert. Neither description quite fit, and as someone constantly trying to understand what makes me tick, this has been frustrating.

Turns out, there are other options. The term "ambivert" got popularized in the 1930s (after being coined by Edmund S. Conklin in 1923), and it refers to a person "who has features of both an introvert (someone who prefers to spend time alone) and an extrovert (someone who prefers to be with other people) in their personality."

@tedtoks

Replying to @Factura🛄 now knowing what an ambivert is, how would you describe yourself? #ambivert #introvert #extrovert #adamgrant #psychology #TEDTalk #worklife

But for those who still don't quite relate, meet the otrovert. Just recently, psychiatrist Rami Kaminski published The Gift of Not Belonging, in which he discusses his coined term to describe a whole new type of personality. In an Insta-reel captioned "What is an Otrovert?" Kaminski mentions the polarization of introverts and extroverts. "When Jung invented the terms extrovert and introvert, he saw them as two fundamental orientations of the personality. I see the otrovert in the same way. A personality trait that faces away from the group."

He continues, "Extroverts and introverts are inherently communal, while the otrovert is an outsider to the group. In itself, it is not a problem or condition, nor is it a diagnostic label. It simply means that while most people learn to develop a sense of belonging to a specific group through social conditioning, otroverts remain social but not communal."

In writer Sarjna Rai's piece, "Struggle to Fit the Mold? The 'Otrovert' Personality Explains Why" for Business Standard, they write: "Unlike introverts or extroverts, otroverts are not defined by where they draw their social energy. Instead, the concept captures people who constantly feel like outsiders, and tend to look in a different direction altogether, not necessarily aligned with the rest of the group."

While it's impossible to group people into perfect categories, Rai explains that Kaminski claims the main thing that sets otroverts apart is their "reluctance to conform to group norms."

Writer Avery White lists signs one might be an otrovert in the article "7 Signs You Might Be an Otrovert" for VegOut. Among them is preferring "high-signal conversations and low-maintenance relationships." They give this as an example: "You’ll happily spend three hours exploring one idea with one person—and then not speak for weeks without either of you taking it personally. In other words, low pressure, low expectations, high connection.

Another on the list—and this is a big one according to Kaminski—is: "You can look extroverted in public—yet feel fundamentally 'other.'" This is actually the crux of the term, and in fact, what Kaminski formed The Otherness Institute for: as their website says, "those who feel they don't belong."

The site also shares that recognizing aspects of this type in yourself and others (if it applies) will help "balance between your individuality and your function as part of the social matrix that determines your well-being. The experience of otherness in a togetherness-minded world can be emotionally bruising. Often misunderstood and misdiagnosed, otherness may lead individuals to feel strange, lonely, and unwelcome in groups. Left unidentified, otroverts' non-belonging can result in a frustrating, futile lifetime effort of trying to 'fit in.'"

Some Redditors are scrambling to figure out if they fit into this category. In the subreddit r/INTP (referencing one of the Myers-Briggs personality types), the OP asks, "Maybe I am an 'otrovert?'" Under this, they write, "Dr. Kaminski described the otrovert child as 'neurotypical, friendly, curious, well-adjusted, and often popular' yet 'they resist being pressured into group activities.'"

While this can seem inconsequential in childhood, joining the peer group "becomes critically important" in adolescence, said the psychiatrist, and teens "start to gauge their self-worth based on the group’s ranking of popularity (or unpopularity).'

"Membership in a group, no matter how lowly, is better than being an outsider," he added. "Otroverts, however, are comfortable with being outsiders and find it impossible to feel like insiders, regardless of how welcome they are.'

There are a handful of commenters who feel seen, but many push back, claiming the term could easily apply to other personality traits. One writes, "I think it's easy to resonate with this description... but as some warning noted, there aren't enough studies done about this term that people should be running to adopt it. I resonated with it after reading about it... But I have ADHD and persistent depressive disorder... both of which coincide with the descriptions of an otrovert."

Time will tell if this new term sticks, but for now, it's helping a lot of people feel more understood.


Photo Credit: Canva

A young sad girl. A baby shark.

There are moments in time, loud and rowdy as they might be, that are reminders of the joyous, little snippets in life. Which is why it has been extra fun that a video from about five years ago has resurfaced, illustrating the best of humanity.

A young girl was on the metro in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. According to @Kidofthreads's recent viral clip on Threads, she was very upset. The caption reads, "This is boys will be boys" and "A little girl was crying, and some drunk friends cheered her up with Baby Shark" (According to a post on Reddit, they are drunkenly coming from a night at Carnival, circa sometime before COVID).


In the Threads video, a group of men—a few also in dresses, earrings, and one even a short wedding veil—go into full clown mode. In unison, and with total passion, they begin singing the notorious earworm, "Baby shark, Doo doo ta do ta do, Baby shark," over and over again. An enormous grin crosses her face and she even begins to sing along.

This is a less-than-a-minute view into how worlds can collide, bringing happiness to (most) everybody on that train. The men were having the best time making the girl, and many of the passengers, feel their joy, and it spread like wildfire.

The comments on Threads (within one day there were nearly 1,000) are interesting. Many of them note, of course, the pure delight. One beautifully shares, "Proof that kindness doesn’t need to be planned. A group of drunk friends turned a crying kid’s night around with Baby Shark. Sometimes strangers remind us the world still has magic."

A young girl is cheered up by men singing Baby Shark. www.youtube.com, Caters Videos

But quite a few also point out how nurturing these men are, challenging stereotypes. One writes, "When we say 'not all men,' this is who we’re referring to." Another adds, "This is what masculinity looks like when it's not toxic." And this one perfectly states, "‘Boys will be boys’ should refer to stuff like this. This is the goofiest, most wholesome thing I’ve ever watched."

On the Subreddit r/MadeMeSmile, hundreds of people commented on the "Baby Shark Metro" video. Many discuss the "happy drunkenness" of it all, but one Redditor shares a similarly heartwarming story: "I was new in Germany in 2016 when a bunch of FC Köln supporters went onto the tram. I was with my wife and my 2-year-old daughter at that time."

What happens next is adorable: "They were all super drunk and singing like there was no tomorrow. As they see my sleeping daughter in her stroller, they immediately stop shouting, but they keep singing — but in whisper. Just imagine dozens of muscular, tattooed football hooligans, drunk and singing soooo softly. I still remember that thing to this day."

- YouTube www.youtube.com



Internet

Teen creates earring that snaps pictures and alerts police in the event of an assault

The South African teen is helping address the high volume of gender-based violence in her country.

Teen creates earring that snaps pictures and alerts police in event of an assault

Gender-based violence is a problem in countries across the globe, but is especially prevalent in South Africa. While laws and societal views are slowly shifting towards making women feel more comfortable reporting assaults, people have been trying to find ways to mitigate the harm. In 2015, four college students invented color-changing nail polish to help detect the presence of "date-rape drugs" in drinks. A 16-year-old girl and her brother invented a hair scrunchie that doubles as a drink cover to prevent drinks from being spiked.

Bohlale Mphahlele of Limpopo, South Africa, is joining the list of young people thinking outside the box to help keep women safe. At just 16 years old, she decided to do something to help women identify their attackers while also getting them help faster. The SJ van der Merwe Technical High School student created an earpiece that fits on the ear like an earring, except it's not. The device is multiple things in one, designed not only to help collect photographic evidence of an assaulter but also to help prevent human trafficking.

safety; gender-based violence; safety invention; human trafficking; domestic violence; teen inventors Contemplative moment at the bar.Photo credit: Canva

There's a lot of tech packed into that small earring-like device, and all of it will assist in keeping women as safe as possible. According to the 2024 South Africa’s Human Sciences Research Council report, more than one in three women of the 5,603 women who participated in the study reported experiencing sexual or physical violence within their lifetime. Just like many women in America don't report assaults due to stigma or fear of not being believed, the same is true for the women in South Africa. Mphahlele is throwing them a lifeline.

The device, aptly named the Alerting Earpiece, is designed to operate with a simple, discreet press of a button. Fiddling with an earring wouldn't be abnormal in any situation. The button being easily accessible in that manner will allow wearers to press it without suspicion. What happens after they push the Alerting Earpiece can be lifesaving.

It acts as a wearable panic device, not only alerting trusted, pre-selected people that you need help, but also alerting law enforcement. The faux earring sends your live GPS location and silently captures photos of the assailant through the tiny front-facing camera. All of that is jam-packed into something that can fit on someone's ear. The camera will provide crucial evidence that can be lacking in these situations, especially if the attacker gets away. The GPS will also enable police to receive the alert in real-time, which can be a game-changer in terms of timeline.

safety; gender-based violence; safety invention; human trafficking; domestic violence; teen inventors Friends enjoying drinks and conversation at a cozy bar.Photo credit: Canva

According to Uzalendo News, judges praised the teen's invention, awarding her the bronze medal at the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists. Mphahlele explains to the same outlet, "that the rise in reported cases of abuse, especially among women and young girls, inspired her to think about practical safety solutions." She emphasized that "technology should be used not just for convenience but to protect the vulnerable."

safety; gender-based violence; safety invention; human trafficking; domestic violence; teen inventors Left: Elegant earring. Right: Bartender pours drinks.Photo credit: Canva

The invention is making waves across South Africa, with the Limpopo Department of Education praising the prototype, and calls from Education Member of the Executive Council Polly Boshielo for investments to enable the device to be mass-produced. The teen isn't standing idly by; she is also actively seeking investors, partnerships, and technical support to refine the device and bring it to consumers, according to iOL.

This clever invention could save lives across the globe and give victims of violent crime a fighting chance at justice.