#5SmartReads - February 15, 2023

GOP attorneys general call for scrapping FDA approval of abortion pill (Axios)

I expected this to happen after the FDA issued an updated rule on the dispensation of mifepristone.

A quick refresher - the updated rule made the mail-order exception (issued during the pandemic) a permanent rule, and it allows pharmacists to dispense it over the counter (pharmacies, however, have the final decision on whether they will offer it over the counter or not).

This article does a thorough job of discussing the legal elements of this challenge, which are significant and dangerous if the Republican attorneys general are successful. This injunction would trump even a state’s own laws that protect abortion, thus causing a national ban.

That itself is terrifying. But what I’m extremely fearful of is the political overreach into FDA and this precedent will impact access to medication (especially in reproductive healthcare).

The FDA has plenty of issues and challenges to overcome. But safety is paramount for every medication they review, authorize, and update rules on. If the GOP challenge is successful, what will stop these politicians from restricting access on misoprostol (the other medication used in medical abortions), birth control, IVF medications, or other medications we can’t even fathom?

I Didn't Expect "The Baby-Sitter's Club" Books To Be So Relatable In My 30s, But Guess What, They Are (BuzzFeed News)

I was gutted when I heard that Netflix didn’t renew The Babysitters Club, a book series that defined my childhood and a show Rho and I loved to watch together.

I’m not alone when I say that the book series was a defining part of my childhood (and my own first jobs in babysitting), and I see now that the series shaped me into the person I am today.

Reading Megan Liscomb’s reflections as she re-read the first seven BSC books was like watching the dots connect my past to my present, and to see the outline of my own kids and who they are and will become.

I can’t wait to embark on my own re-read of these books (and thank goodness there are so many, because I’m still upset about the show’s cancellation).

And because we all self-identified as a BSC member, I’d love to know - which character did you feel most connected to as a kid? I was definitely a Kristy (and still am), though I desperately wanted to be a Claudia or Stacy.

Health concerns grow in East Palestine, Ohio, after train derailment (NPR)

A big thanks to my friends Sam and Asa for alerting me to this story yesterday.

The train derailing in Ohio last week is an intersectional story - about the state of transportation and infrastructure, on labor (a reminder that rail workers were about to strike for safer working conditions), on the environmental safety of our communities, on public health, liability and the very American practice of lawsuits, and of the balance of regulation/oversight and capitalism.

This piece is a really solid recap of the environmental safety and health concerns of the accident, but it’s a needed reminder that gun violence is not the only challenge in community safety, and environmental safety has long been an issue in Flint, Michigan and Jackson, Mississippi.

I also found this post from @smarthernews to be incredibly helpful in learning about this particular crisis (and definitely read the comments):

How Emotionally Intelligent People Use the 'Done List' to Feel More Productive, Fulfilled, and Accomplished (Inc.)

It’s ironic, but the days I don’t write a to-do list are my most productive - and my most in flow - days. And “done lists” are a big reason why.

I know I’m not alone when I sometimes write an item I’ve already done onto my to-do list, just to have something to cross off. Go a step beyond it, and use that space in your notebook and app to document what you’ve already done that day to get yourself into a get-things-done flow.

This piece offers more details on the psychological benefits of a “done list.” More importantly, it highlights the most important part of your done list - the “why I did it” for every item you’ve done.

Here are a few things I jotted down in my “done list” on Monday:

• worked out. Even though I didn’t sleep well last night, getting in 3 miles on my walking pad and doing a short bodyweight strength workout helped shift me from “this is how I feel” to “this is how I want to feel” and I definitely felt a lot better.

• deleted social media apps from my phone this week. I spent too much time scrolling TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram over the weekend and was short-tempered with the kids, and I don’t like how I snippy and impatient I was. I want to give them a more patient, fun mom instead of “grouchy mommy”

• caught up on bookkeeping for the month to date. Every year I end up spending days catching up on accounting and finances for tax prep and I vow to never do it again. This year is the different year, and while I meant to do this last Friday, I’m getting it done now instead of punting it down.

• answered those e-mails that lingered in my inbox last week, with my thanks for their patience. I want to reciprocate the respect these folks have shown me, and to close out some of these outstanding items so we can focus on the tasks at hand.

Derek Green: Running for Mayor with a Vision for a Public Bank in Philadelphia (Shoppe Black)

The upcoming mayoral election in Philadelphia is one I’m watching closely, and I really love candidate Derek Green’s proposal to introduce a public bank in the city (which is a deeply American institution, as it was the brainchild of Alexander Hamilton in our nation’s early days).

A public bank for the city is a bold proposal, and an intersectional one:

As with all things, there’s a long path between an idea and a reality and the details are absolutely critical to make the reality a success. But there is momentum for public banks in various cities and states, and I hope to see it become a successful reality and to reach the would-be entrepreneurs and business owners it needs to.