The hexagon is nearly 30,000 km (20,000 miles) wide. This is large enough that two Earths could fit inside the storm with room to spare.
It is a standing atmospheric wave created by a powerful jet stream that wraps around the pole. Winds along its edges can exceed 300 km/h (about 220 mph).
At the very center of the hexagon lies a deep, dark polar vortex that extends hundreds of kilometers down into Saturn's atmosphere.
Text for H.R.2540 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act
While I've talked before about needing to call your Congresspeople to encourage them to stop bills like the various bad internet bills*, I don't get to talk enough about bills we gotta call to push them to approve.
But that's what we have here, a bill to fix a massive problem with the SSI disability system in the US.
Since 1989 there's been a savings cap of only 2000 dollars (3000 if you're married), which has lead a lot of disabled people to be stuck in poverty due to being unable to save money and with the threat of losing their benefits (Including medicaid, which they often get through SSI) due to that.
This bill would raise the savings cap to 10,000 dollars (12000 if you're married) and tie its increase to the rate of inflation.
Now, I must be clear this is nowhere near enough (I feel like something like my SSDI I lucked into should be the bare minimum IMO), but it is an important start that would improve so many lives, and it's something we need to fight for.
It's bipartisan too, so it may have a viable path forward there! It's currently before the House Ways and Means Committee, so if your house memeber is on them, call!
But even then, it's probably worth calling your house members and senators to tell them they need to vote Yes on this bill if it reaches their floor.
Maybe if we fight hard enough this time, it won't get destroyed by Richie Fucking Neal, a person who I think should be drawn and quartered in front of a live studio audience! But that's its own topic, so I digress...
*Which you still need to do, they're using a new legal decision against Meta to try and push them more, despite how the push for age verification is an astroturf op by Meta to kill off the competition, for the love of god call your congresspeople ASAP, there's a tool to directly help you with that.
Trustees of the Social Security trust fund predict the fund will be exhausted in eight years. Unless Congress acts, Social Security payments
One would think the first step would be to repeal all the tax cuts for the rich in my life time and most particularly the one Republicans passed under W, capping social security taxes for the wealthy so they no longer had to pay in the same share of their income as everyone else. <.< >.>
Maybe you’re young, and you think this doesn’t affect you. But, it will affect your parents, or your grandparents.
And, remember, if Republicans kill these programs, the dollars you pay in -- that are/have been withheld from your paycheck -- you will never get back.
Looking at beginning the process of applying for ssi. Do you recommend I get a lawyer involved from the beginning? Do you have any recommendations/tips?
YES get a lawyer from the beginning. There are many out there that will work with you for no cost upfront (they get payed like 7-9% of your backpay when you win, capped at a certain amount).
Unless you are really unbelievably lucky you will almost certainly get denied the 1st time you apply even with a lawyer.
They are really good at the paperwork and wording everything correctly in front of a judge. Mine was a rockstar . It took 4.5 years total but I did ultimately win the case with her.
Try to find a law firm with a lot of good reviews. Call around and do a bit of homework . I got really lucky with mine .
