VERSE BY MALEKOFF

VERSE by Malekoff, Politics-plus ... All original free associations.

Melania tells children, "Be best"
The nation answers, "Surely you jest"
So side splitting
Must be kidding
C'mon First Lady, give it a rest

Somehow we made it through Watergate
That darkest of times sealed Nixon's fate
And now there's Trump
That treasonous punk
True patriots cannot allow his escape

Fast food burgers make me sick
Meat is gray and grease is slick
They make me gag
And my belly sag
Where's the the john, I gotta go quick

24 hours of stations to choose
The never ending hum of cable news
Look at the talking heads
Including retired feds
Riling me up or making me snooze

Can barely recall her mother's face
ICE police caged her up in this place
Five-sixty-five
Is mine alive?
Or has she gone missing without a trace?

Rudy Guliani said, "truth is not truth"
America's mayor is long in the tooth
So full of crap
Needs a long nap
Or a quick dip in the fountain of youth

The King of Twitter lost his mind
Left all rational thought behind
Croaks like a frog
Lies like a dog
Regarding morality he's totally blind

The base is under Donald's spell
They do not know him very well
Hypnotized
Mesmerized
As dogs reacting to Pavlov's bell

Michael Cohen has copped a plea
Soiled his pants and took a pee
He's gonna burn
Unless he turns
The tables on President DJT

Madonna co-opted the Queen of Soul
Now Ciccone is paying a toll
Despite all her cash
Huge fan backlash
When Aretha arrived they broke the mold

The ladies of Salem have arrived
To tell us Agent Orange conspired
That twisted runt
Declared "Witch hunt!"
Thou protesteth too much - So you're  fired!

From, I'd take a bullet for my boss
To, I'd like to throw him under the bus
Michael Cohen is in deep shit
Agent Orange needs to quit
It's justice served or democracy lost

A tribute to Heather Heyer
Who stepped straight into the fire
To humanity's friend
Love the world sends
Your memory won't cease to inspire

A baby blimp flew high overhead
Bopping in time with Grateful Dead
The queen feted Trump
The orange-haired lump
"A stable genius, I am," he said

If stomach-turning Hannity
Were eaten by a manatee
There'd be such glee
That a windbag like he
Was turned to waste in a tropical sea

The children of Flint drank lead
Poison then went to their heads
No one took blame
Michigan's shame
Tap water that brings only dread

To our nation's enduring disgrace
Is prejudging according to race
Bias by skin
Our original sin
Diversity we should all embrace

That guy with the orange cheeks
Moscow should be where he sleeps
He rants and he rages
And puts children in cages
But with Vladi he acts like a sheep

Mike Pence is like a mannequin
Standing beside the sultan of sin
That frozen smile
Is code for "Sig Heil"
He's Charlie McCarthy's next of kin

Agent Orange is selling us out
Sowing the seeds of eternal doubt
Vladimir's pet
Has no regret
Unprincipled lying treasonous lout

Bone spur orange dodged the draft
Misleading congress is his craft
Oh me, oh my
That boy can lie
And republicans cover his ass

"No collusion" is not really so
Agent Orange is America's foe
He cheats and he lies
Gives comfort to spies
That sorry sack of s*** must go

What leads to a meaningful life?
A career, a husband, a wife?
It's not what you'd guess
You see, life's a mess
Cannot be smoothed by a butterknife

Agent Orange is straight from hell
Take a close look and you can tell
It is not "if" or "maybe"
He's Rosemary's baby
No doubt he's profoundly unwell

He joined him alone in a room
Saw Vladi and started to swoon
His heart is so hollow
He started to swallow
One infamous Monday at noon

If Cheech & Chong met Don & Vladi
Think they'd toke some wacky tabacky?
From phony gladness
To reefer madness
The key to peace might just be a fatty

Do you feel a nagging itch
'bout the guy who's Putin's bitch
Orange face
Huge disgrace
Women beware, bring your mace

He fancies himself as Narcissus
He’s really much more like pertussis
Spreading his germs
Making us squirm
With thousands of lies so outrageous

Mar-a-Lago for golf with Vladi?
Nunes will serve as their caddy
Should be a thriller
Bare-chested killer
Asking 45: to "Who is your daddy?"

Don't be deceived my dear friends
Putin sees America's end
45 in his pocket
Nuclear tipped rocket
A missile of death he will send

Shady old Paul Manafort
Is headed to criminal court
He'll do the time
Lest he drop a dime
From 45 there'll be no support

Be prepared to get out the vote
Take a car, a train or a boat
We have a choice
Amplify your voice
Grab your coat, keep freedom afloat!

For all of the POTUS's vanity
And transparent acts of insanity
FOX is his lair
That vicious broodmare
Sowing his seed with Sean Hannity

If you're ever feeling hell-bent
Don't you bitch, instead dissent
Make some waves
Not rants & raves
Stand up, speak out & represent

When a football player takes a knee
He's excercising free speech you see
Peaceful protest is patriotic
Shutting it down is idiotic
Take a knee for Emmett Till, Rosa Parks & MLK

There's something about adolescents
They're brooding or effervescent
What is it with teens
That live in between
Darkness & blinding incandescence?

I just had surgery for a hernia
By the Ancient Order of Hibernia
They closed up the hole
And charged me a toll
So now one might say I'm superbia!

Michael Cohen has 45 on tape
Fancies himself as a hero in a cape
But it's not really so
He's just another schmo
An attorney on paper but in truth a great ape

On Friday there'll be a blood moon
July 27 coming real soon
Eclipse of the heart
Adrip in the dark
Prophecy or marching dragoon?

I sleep with someone that snores
So loud it rattles the doors
My eyes are wide shut
I lie still like King Tut
Can't sleep so I get up & do chores

Migrant kids' psyches we're battered
On US soil dreams were shattered
Came to escape
Violence and rape
To 45 none of it mattered

When Agent Orange disappears
Many folks will stomp and cheer
That won't hide
The great divide
Racial strife will remain my dears

Religion can be good or evil
One's morality strong or feeble
Feed the poor or
Take for yourself more
A generous heart or deceitful

We teach our children not to lie
Yet POTUS says sea is sky
Up is down
Flat is round
Truth means nothing to this guy

Mayor Giuliani has run out of time
America's Mayor swims in slime
At a great cost
Integrity lost
Trading it all for a spot on prime time

Big boss is under the gun
Mueller has got him on the run
Now I can see
Him taking a plea
Quiet as a mouse, cat got his tongue

Let's not sugar coat the truth
Trump committed child abuse
At the border
He did murder
Thousands of souls with no excuse

Whose the greatest fraud of all
Orange cheeks mean and cruel
Has a base
With no taste
Sells false hope to hordes of fools

I don't like glaring at Kindle or Nook
I like the delicious feel of a book
Turning the pages
Paper in cages
I'll take a hardback by hook or by crook

Give me liberty or take my breath
Free speech or spiritual death
Who is this guy?
A Russian spy?
King of s*** mountain or dime store Macbeth

Sleepless days & sleepless nights
Freddie Fender go fly a kite
Country twang
Purple gang
These pants look good but man they're tight

On the way to kingdom come
I chewed a piece of bubblegum
Bazooka Joe
Eddie & Flo
Pearly gates and bottle of rum

Agent Orange is a lying pig
Separates families, takes the kids
Not my prez
I hereby sez
Crushing human rights is his gig

The folks at the rallies are odd
Pretending 45 is a god
They live by mob rule
And stammer and drool
Then bow to a fake, a phony & fraud

Ivanka got the poor to stitch
Stuff but not Abercrombie & Fitch
Paid pennies an hour
Held court in Trump Tower
Starved still they did as she got rich

POTUS slammed the great LeBron
A man of character, Don's got none
He's helping it seems
To fulfill kids' dreams
As POTUS tears families apart by the seams

When Donald Junior was a tot
He dreamed about a Russian plot
It took all he had
To dig dirt for dad
And soon he'll have a prison cot

Suffering from our collective amnesia
Still fast asleep from the anesthesia
It still isn't too late
To escape this cruel fate
Need a stiff shot of Milk of Magnesia

Agent Orange says: "Stand & Salute"
Bellowing orders from an empty suit
Anti-minority
No moral authority
Players who kneel he cannot uproot

Mueller will indict a Stone
Poor Roger too late to atone
Sneaky guy
Gonna fry
Prison next and final home

Our system of justice he demeans
Many in congress will not intervene
The future is bleak
Acting like sheep
Kissing up so pathetically obscene

Agent Orange despises black & brown
Vituperation spins his world 'round
How did this creature
Became such a feature?
His sense of omnipotence makes the earth frown

Forty-five thinks the Earth is flat
On global warming he smells a rat
Ridiculous putz
Ideas so nuts
Fancies himself an aristocrat

Sharp Objects is a funky show
Southern gals on the down low
Camille feeling torn
Since she was born
Her mama Adora drinking bordeaux

In a mid-morning tweet monologue
Forty-five called Omarosa a dog
She said he's corrupt
Wants his ass whupped
In a White House that's stuck in a fog

Raging parents in the Sooner State
Threatening a trans teen to castrate!
Diversity be damned
Hatred's in their hands
Stand up, speak out & demonstrate!

Brennan's clearance taken away
With 45 it's watch what you say
Attack free speech
The right to preach
Unless your willing to pay to play

Omarosa, she has some gall
Got Agent Orange by the balls
She's not hoarding
Lots of recordings
Setting the table for a great fall

Trump is tainting the jury
To the constitution's fury
Rule of law
In his craw
Their verdict won't end this story

Copyright Andrew Malekoff 2018

Some of these appear under my friend @feministlimericks account on Instagram

A MESSAGE TO ASPIRING AUTHORS for Social Work with Groups Journal

A message to aspiring authors from Andrew Malekoff[1], Editor-in-Chief, Social Work with Groups, a journal of community and clinical practice    

I have been reviewing manuscripts for Social Work with Groups since I became editor in1990. During that time I’ve noticed some trends in the types of articles that were not accepted for publication, particularly those articles that address direct practice. I want to describe those trends, that continue to this day, and what my thinking is about them. Such discussion will help define the kinds of articles about group work practice that I want to encourage in this journal.

          Broadly speaking, two kinds of articles about direct practice are most prevalent among those not accepted for publication in the journal. First, there are articles that describe the needs and dynamics of a particular population group - those who have been abused or persons with a particular illness, for example. While such delineations are often informative, too frequently the reference to groups and group work practice in such articles is minimal and seems to be appended reluctantly and uneasily to qualify the article for consideration in this, a journal on work with groups. The portions of such articles that refer to group work practice are not an integral part of the authors’ presentations and seem artificial.

          Second, there are articles that describe a group and its process, be it a particular kind of group or a group with a particular population, with which the author worked. While such descriptions are often interesting, too frequently their purpose was unclear. In these articles, the practice described is not examined conceptually and therefore the applicability to other groups of the work depicted is never made clear. Given the complexity of groups, of individuals, and of situations, articles that are solely descriptive, that do not look critically or analytically at work that is being presented, are not helpful to their readers.

          With respect to both kinds of paper, population-oriented or purely descriptive, I have found practice illustrations to be too general to capture the essence of the work described. Illustrations that capture the true nature of group, bringing to life the interaction among the members and between the members and the worker, are too often absent.

          What I would like to see included in Social Work with Groups are articles that bring together the doing and thinking of group work practice. In articles that emphasize knowledge of the needs of a particular population, implications for and illustrations of group work practice based on such knowledge need to be integral. In articles that portray practice through presentation of descriptive vignettes and examples, the rationale that underpins the practice, the thinking behind it, and the implications for future practice with groups are crucial elements.

          I recognize that writing can be a painstaking and tedious endeavor. To complete a work after several drafts, only to have it rejected by journal editors, can be discouraging and demoralizing. My feedback here is not meant to discourage, but just the reverse. My aim is to encourage all with interest in work with groups to share their ideas and experiences. I hope that increased understanding of the reasons that articles are rejected for publication will result in an increased number of articles that are accepted for inclusion in this journal.

More details about submission: www.tandfonline.com/wswg There is a drop down menu with “instructions for authors” or go to: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?journalCode=wswg20&page=instructions

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[1] Andrew Malekoff, Editor-in-Chief, Social Work with Groups, c/o North Shore Child and Family Guidance Center, 480 Old Westbury Road, Roslyn Heights, NY 11577. Email: Anjru@aol.com

LESSONS FROM THE FIELD

By Andrew Malekoff

In recent years I have written about concussions in youth sports in this space, with a special focus on Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a progressive degenerative disease of the brain that is the result of repetitive brain trauma. This was something I knew nothing about in my teenaged years. As a high school and college football player in the 1960s and ’70s, using one’s head as a battering ram and shock absorber was expected.

Beyond the discovery of CTE and what it has generated in the way of much-improved player safety, August never fails to evoke memories of twice-daily summer practices when guys like me went to “training camp” before school started. Training camp lasted about two weeks. It was usually hot out. They were two weeks that felt like a year. Those were the make or break days of my youth. No one was cut from the team as long as they showed up, but many did not last.

The rawest depiction of a brutal summer football camp can be found in the book The Junction Boys by Jim Dent. The subtitle of the book is: How Ten Days in Hell with Bear Bryant Forged a Championship Team. Although I never went through anything quite like the Junction Boys did, it seems that all high school and college football players have similar war stories about summer camp.

I’m not about to rehash what I’ve since learned since the discovery of CTE and the need for protective measures or share stories from my summer football camp days. However, at the risk of being cliché, there are some important lessons I learned from playing football.

As we round out another August, I thought I’d share a few of those lessons here. Most have served me well. Some have a downside. Here goes:

1.     Punctuality. As the saying goes, showing up is half the battle. But don’t just show up; be there on time. In football there were serious consequences for being late, but losing the respect of one’s peers eclipsed them all.

2.     Hard work. Know that when you are working hard, there are others working just as hard and others who are not. Push yourself to surpass your opponents and inspire your teammates.

3.     Stoicism. Keep your head up. Push through disappointment and injuries. This is mostly a good trait, but it can also prevent you from seeking the support you need when you really need it, physically and emotionally.  Vulnerability is not a lesson I learned in football.

4.     Dependability. It is essential that others who are pulling with you toward accomplishing a goal know that they can always count on you. There is a brotherhood that forms on a football team that demands dependability.

5.     Humility. Enjoy success but don’t be boastful. Have gratitude for all those who helped to support your success.

6.     Perseverance. Never give up. It is what your adversaries expect. By pushing through missteps and setbacks you learn what it takes to succeed and that your capacity to overcome failure is greater than you anticipated.

7.     Resilience. As the legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers Vince Lombardi said, “It’s not whether you get knocked down; it’s whether you get up.” To survive playing football, resilience is essential. 

Fortunately, these lessons can be learned in many places other than the football field. Any group activity that requires teamwork, sacrifice and shared goals generate important life lessons. Make sure the young people in your life put down their cellphones and other tech gadgets and take up a sport, join a club or get involved in the arts, to name a few possibilities.

They’ll grow into better people—and with no head-butting required.

Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.

Published in Long Island Weekly, an Anton Weekly publicaton, August 27, 2018 - https://longislandweekly.com/lessons-from-the-field/

A MATTER OF CIVIL RIGHTS

A Matter of Civil Rights

By Andrew Malekoff

Did you know that every day more than 290 Americans die from suicide or a drug overdose? With proper treatment, many of these tragedies could be prevented—but despite a law that guarantees coverage, people face enormous roadblocks when they seek care.

In 2008 President George W. Bush signed the landmark Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (Parity Act). The Parity Act mandates equal insurance coverage for mental health and substance use disorders (MH/SUD) as compared to other medical/surgical benefits covered by the plan.

According to its new website parityat10.com, “Parity at 10 seeks to ensure that insurance carriers and state Medicaid programs comply with the law so that consumers can access the evidence-based health care they need and are entitled by law to receive.”

What does equal insurance coverage mean? It means ending insurer discrimination against access to timely and affordable care including high out-of-pocket costs and shorter lengths of care for MH/SUD. Parity—which is another word for equity—in this case means that MH/SUD coverage must be provided on par with coverage of medical and surgical care.

Notably this legislation was the result of a bipartisan effort by Senators Paul Wellstone, a liberal Democrat, and Pete Domenici, a conservative Republican. What the senators had in common were personal family experiences that motivated their tireless efforts to pass this law.

Parity saves lives. Parity law is a civil rights law that has not been vigorously enforced by the States, which have the primary responsibility for enforcement of private insurance and Medicaid.

One of the most pernicious violations and barriers to care is inadequate networks of MH/SUD providers. North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center documented this in its 2018 Project Access Study which surveyed 650 Long Island consumers of MH/SUD care. Nearly 50% of respondents said that it was easier for them to access medical/surgical care than MH/SUD Care.

Nationally, patients responding to a National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) survey reported being denied twice as often for mental health care as for medical surgical care under the Affordable Care Act.

The actuarial firm Milliman reviewed claims data in New York and found that patients had to go out-of-network for MH/SUD care far more often than for medical/surgical care—a very expensive proposition that flies in the face of the Parity Act.

At North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, we are a proud partner of the Parity at 10 Compliance Campaign. On August 10 I attended an inaugural Parity at 10 meeting in Albany with my fellow advocates and top officials in the Cuomo administration.

Some of the details in this column were included in the policy brief provided to Governor Cuomo. The consensus among the advocates was that insurers do everything in their power to skirt parity.

Another staunch supporter of the original legislation was Patrick J. Kennedy, a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Kennedy struggled with mental illness and addiction for most of his life.

In his book A Common Struggle, Kennedy said the battle ahead is for the law to be enforced in the face of health insurers who stand to profit by denying the full range of coverage for people living with mental illness and addictions. Kennedy rightly frames the inequities that people with mental illness and addictions face as a matter of civil rights.

Discriminatory insurance coverage for those with mental health and substance use disorders must end. When insurers do not comply with the law and enforcement is inadequate, millions of Americans are at risk.

Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.

This article appeared in TheIslandNow.com on August 16, 2018