The Conservative Test - No Thought Involved

The ten guidelines, distributed to RNC members in recent weeks, are as follows with my impression in Yellow :

(1) We support smaller government, smaller national debt, lower deficits and lower taxes by opposing bills like Obama's "stimulus" bill;

(1a) We oppose Social Security, Unemployment Payments, Medicare, Medicade, WIC, Infrastructure improvements, Educational excellence, FDA regulations, Taxing the Wealthy, Safety Regulations, Environmental regulations, and any regulations on (the Oil & Gas industries, Health Care, Banking, Investments, Military-Industrial Complex, Militias and US Insurgencies)

(2) We support market-based health care reform and oppose Obama-style government run health care;

(2a) We oppose any effort to assure every American has Health Care Coverage

(3) We support market-based energy reforms by opposing cap and trade legislation;

(3a) We oppose any effort to improve our energy situation even though the Market based economy has proven they are not capable of transitioning to the energy needs and desires of the American Public.

(4) We support workers' right to secret ballot by opposing card check;

(4a) We oppose giving American workers a level playing field in dealing with companies they have made wealthy.

(5) We support legal immigration and assimilation into American society by opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants;

(5a) We oppose providing a legal path for citizenship or legal work permits for those who do the hardest and lowest paying jobs in the US .

(6) We support victory in Iraq and Afghanistan by supporting military-recommended troop surges;

(6a) We oppose having to define what "Victory" means in Iraq and Afghanistan but think putting more American lives in danger without a clear objective is okay.

(7) We support containment of Iran and North Korea, particularly effective action to eliminate their nuclear weapons threat;

(7a) We oppose working with our allies on a world wide front in dealing with nuclear proliferation and have never complained while our allies developed nuclear arsenals because they are our friends - for now. We are also opposed to stopping the arms trade to other countries because we are by far the largest arms dealer in the world (see Below)

United States 41%
Russia 17%
France 8%
United Kingdom 7%
China 3%
Germany 4%
Italy 3%
Other European 11%
Others 6%

(8) We support retention of the Defense of Marriage Act

(8a) We oppose gay and lesbian Marriage because they don't have rights because they are not like us.

(9) We support protecting the lives of vulnerable persons by opposing health care rationing and denial of health care and government funding of abortion.

(9a) We oppose of assuring vulnerable persons health care and believe if they had coverage ours would be reduced.

(10) We support the right to keep and bear arms by opposing government restrictions on gun ownership;

(10a) We oppose any effort to adhere to the full text of the second amendment that reads:
A "well regulated Militia", being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. We believe there are no "Regulations" acceptable in the "Right to Bear Arms even though "well regulated" is clearly stated in the amendment.

Why is the most powerful country in the world...

Do you ever wonder why we would rather go to war to prove our greatness than put one red cent into our Health care system, our schools, our infrastructure, ecology, the environment .... blah blah... you get the picture.

While the understanding is that communications and technology are the "edge" our country needs our telecoms are hoarding money and providing second rate service in much of our country. Just look at the connection speeds by country and you will notice we are 29th or 25 places behind Latvia. There is no excuse for this or the Health Care Crisis.

Top Countries by Download Speed

1. 22.27 Mb/s Republic of Korea
   
2. 16.30 Mb/s Japan
3. 15.40 Mb/s Aland Islands
4. 13.94 Mb/s Latvia
5. 13.73 Mb/s Lithuania
6. 13.46 Mb/s Sweden
   
7. 13.32 Mb/s Romania
8. 12.72 Mb/s Netherlands
9. 12.37 Mb/s Bulgaria
10. 10.39 Mb/s Moldova, Republic of
11. 9.74 Mb/s Hong Kong
12. 9.73 Mb/s Andorra
13. 9.27 Mb/s Slovakia
14. 8.97 Mb/s Portugal

.. 29. 7.04 Mb/s United States

Like Flipping a Switch - Corsi Paranoia

Why can a person make the absurd statement that the gunman at Fort Hood was a consultant to President Obama.

Jerome Corsi thrives on terrorism and increases his power over unsuspecting people who live in fear. Corsi is a purveyor of paranoia keeping large numbers of people under a paranoid cloud.

This is how he does it:


"Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the alleged shooter in yesterday’s massacre at Fort Hood, played a homeland security advisory role in President Barack Obama’s transition into the White House, according to a key university policy institute document.The Homeland Security Policy Institute at George Washington University published a document May 19, entitled Thinking Anew Security Priorities for the Next Administration: Proceedings Report of the HSPI Presidential Transition Task Force, April 2008 January 2009,in which Hasan of the Uniformed Services University School of Medicine is listed on page 29 of the document as a Task Force Event Participant."It is a lie, of course Hasan only attended a meeting of a private organization that gave the transition some unsolicited advice. To a group of conspiracy theorists, this is the connection.How long before Fox News picks up the story?

Corsi treats this non-relationship as if Hasan was a major (no pun intended) consultant on policy during the transition of the Obama administration.

Jerome Corsi is making people mentally ill, fearful and living in constant fear that the reality of life is dangerous.

Definition

Paranoia is an unfounded or exaggerated distrust of others, sometimes reaching delusional proportions. Paranoid individuals constantly suspect the motives of those around them, and believe that certain individuals, or people in general, are "out to get them."

“In the aftermath of 9/11, many Americans were so afraid of flying that they chose to drive instead. That decision, based on the perceived threat of another airliner hijacking, led to 1,600 casualties in the following year. The families of the people who died in those crashes thought they had lost them to “the routine traffic accidents we accept as the regrettable cost of living in the modern world.” Daniel Gardner begs to differ: What killed them was fear.” ~ Jane Bosveld (Discover Online)

[Martha] Stout defines terrorism as "violence committed with the primary goal of manipulating the minds of the surviving population." It creates a paranoia switch in our minds, or turns on an already existing one. Its "most cherished ambition is to affect us psychologically, to instill a sense of helplessness in the minds of individual citizens, and to steal, in wholesale grabs, from our collective store of hopefulness."

It is in this way that terrorists (whether they be Western intelligence agency puppet masters or foreign "terrorist" patsies) are able to steer a battered public in the direction of their choice. However, we can make sure that terrorism does not work on our minds by being aware of its effects and its purpose, and the tactics of those who exploit it. Martha Stout from The Paranoia Switch,

In this way, corrupt politicians can keep their enemy divided by focusing on side issues. While a population is busy infighting over gun control, abortion, religion, etc., the deviants in office can escape notice.

If the people were aware of the manipulations being used on them by their leaders, such manipulations would prove ineffective. "Witnesses, and the clear light of day, are crucially important to our safety from abuse, and anathema to abusers. In The Wizard of Oz, the little man in the draped compartment, working the knobs to project the image of a gigantic, frightening wizard, shouts, "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!" - because he knows that, as soon as people pull back the drapes, the illusion will be over." Wife abusers depend on the secrecy of their abuse, and do everything they can to keep it that way. In the same way, corrupt politicians use a controlled media to present their mask of sanity, operating behind a veneer of cheap propaganda and conduct their black-ops under "top secrecy".

The Landscape of the US

So who really lost or won in the elections yesterday?

Both parties really lost and it's becoming clear the two major party's representatives have shown us all they have no clue of what most people really want. The angry "right" have shown that there is a frustration with rules. The vocal "left" think they "know it all" with intricate, nuanced and convoluted answers. Their "blind followers" fail to question and have great faith in core leadership.

That takes care of 40 percent of the country. Of course we cannot forget that is the 40% that makes up 60% of those who vote. Of course there is the "independents" made up of "Libertarians" and a wide spectrum of the disenchanted who do vote at about 10% and growing.

True moderates who are the largest group make up about 50% of the populace and vote at a rate of about 50% in presidential elections and 20% in off years unless some issue with "legs" pops up.

So what is wrong with this picture? We are all confused. Confused by spin, false information, ads, "bait and switch" tactics and a variety of overwhelming problems.

What we need is a clear Vision and mission statement and a set of goals both major parties and the "Independents" can work together on using a new approach - no slogans, sniping, no continuation of the same tired arguments that have proven wrong. Above all that the prime issue is jobs. We are finding quickly that we are no longer self-sufficient.

The main strength of out country was the sense that being strong internally is what made us strong throughout the world. We are no longer there. Look at almost any product today and not just consumer products and ask one question. How can we survive as a country if the global economy collapses? The answer is we cannot.

All the abortion laws, gay marriage laws, tax lowering bills, health care reforms, bank bailouts and crooked/unfaithful/immoral/corrupted by lobbyist politicians, and smaller/larger government cannot save us from degeneration from the greed, selfish and inconsiderate behavior of us all.

There is hope, however, but time is running out.

We WILL Vote

Strategy experts have convinced politicians that the vocal tea bagger passion is worth 10 apathetic voters who really want change. They believe a riled up citizenry full of hate will be more likely to vote. What they do not understand is that the frustration of the tea baggers will not totally close the minds of everyone. We are realizing more and more the dishonest arguments about cost, the "government," taxes, torture, lack of regulations, lack of any sense of the victimization of the American public is being understood by more and more Americans.

We are not safer, healthier, wealthier, happier, more secure under Republican't rule. In fact were were attacked at home under Bush/Cheney, more in debt, less safe from threat, our government is more distrusted by the Americans and the rest of the world. The Health Care system from Insurance to Pharmaceuticals to health care supplies to are robbing us of health, wealth and well being. We DO notice and we will vote.

It's time for a campaign with a simple slogan to be added at the end of every message to congressmen and congresswomen. Very simple to let them know the progressives and moderate forces of the Democratic party is being mobilized and does care about the direction Congress has shown in the Health Care proceedings or lack thereof - Very Simple Slogan:

We WILL Vote!

What a Warrior - or Not

While Cheney shoots first and asks questions later (Harry Whittington doesn't look remotely like a quail) he seems to think everyone should do the same.

How stupid do you have to be to make this statement:

"The White House must stop dithering while America's armed forces are in danger," Cheney told the conservative Center for Security Policy. "It's time for President Obama to do what it takes to win a war he has repeatedly and rightly called a war of necessity."

and follow it with this:

"Make no mistake. Signals of indecision out of Washington hurt our allies and embolden our adversaries..."

While I personally do not confusion with responsible thoughtfulness. I do recognize that saying the President is dithering is saying to our enemies that we are weak. Does this guy really give a flying flip about how our is seen in the world or whether our actions take lives like the 5,000+ Americans and 100,000 lives of Iraq citizens.

He can talk to the American Enterprise Institute and idiots like Frank Gaffney all he wants about patriotism but it isn't patriotic to give awards to people who out our covert agents and are convicted felons but they do.

All in all I'd say let him talk though so history can record the insidious nature of the man and his callous use of our soldiers for his own self interests.

Good riddance Mr Dick Cheney

Run for Our Lives

I believe the Public Option is the Compromise.

Republicant - Where Logic and Reason Fail

Will Obama’s Nobel Prize Backfire on Peace Efforts?
Written by Arieh O’Sullivan

Even as the Nobel Peace Prize was being announced, Obama’s own special Mideast envoy was in Jerusalem holding intensive meetings with Israelis and Palestinians, trying to restart peace talks.

Yet, George Mitchell’s shuttle diplomacy in the region, now boosted by the fact that he not only represents a determined American President, but also a Nobel Peace Prize laureate-designate, was still being seen as a failure.

After nine months and one uncomfortable summit of leaders, American diplomacy in the Middle East is no closer to its goal of brokering peace between Israel and the Palestinians within two years.

Reuven Rivlin, the Speaker of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, said he believed that the Nobel prize would cause Obama to step up the pressure on Israel. Echoing a concern among many Israelis, Rivlin said Obama is now going to want to prove that he was deserving of the prize.

So what does this say? President Obama is pushing for peace by having Mitchell start up the talks then how is the peace prize a problem?
~~~~

Talk show host Rush Limbaugh's website featured the headline "Our president is a laughingstock" and portrayed Obama as the darling of "European leftist elites."

Rush is so damned jealous her can't remember who our allies are anymore. I'd like to know who Rush is allied with if not Europe? Perhaps Rush doesn't need allies since he couldn't get any if he tried other than those who hate this country and our elected government. Anarchy sucks Rush.

BARACK Obama should have been "man enough" to refuse the Nobel Peace Prize, former foreign minister Alexander Downer writes today.

Alexander Downer won't ever have to worry about turning down the peace prize. What a downer


The president should use the acceptance ceremony in December “to remind the Nobel Committee that each one of them sleeps soundly at night because of the U.S. armed forces,” she said. So instead of attending the ceremony himself — which she said would only “add to the farce” — Obama should “send the mother of a fallen American soldier to accept the prize on behalf of the U.S. military,” Cheney said.

Liz Cheney is proof of nature over nurture or any combination thereof, personally I sleep a heck of a lot better knowing Dick and George are out of office and I'm sure 80% of the world is sleeping better today.

Conservative columnist George Will said “The Nobel Prize committee would with this decision have forfeited its reputation for seriousness if it had a reputation for seriousness,”

I wonder if George Will would feel the same if George Bush or Dick Cheney or Ronald Reagan or Dick Nixon had gotten the peace prize instead of Barack Obama, Jimmy Carter and Al Gore. Maybe your guys are not working very hard for peace George

William Kristol said, “This is an anti-American committee,” Kristol said on Fox. Mr. Obama should have turned down the prize, Kristol insisted. But barring that, “the second-best thing would be to go over and give a pro-American speech” at the acceptance ceremony.

Oh sure Bill, giving The Nobel Peace Prize to the American President is the most blatant Anti-American act a committee could do - are you stupid or stupefied.

Grapes to Vinegar - Obama's Nobel Peace Prize

I am a President Obama supporter so when he won the Nobel Peace Prize I was elated. I also immediately wondered what the party of Status Quo would say but I already knew. It goes something like this:

Washington » The surprise announcement that President Barack Obama has won the Nobel Peace Prize turned into an almost instant partisan brawl in the nation's capital, with Republicans claiming he's not yet worthy and Democrats calling such remarks anti-American.

"I just lost all respect for the award," said Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah. "It used to be one of distinction, but it is hard to give it any credibility."

He called Friday's announcement "a political statement" based less on anything Obama has done and more on who no longer resides in the White House.

• "I just think they were glad George Bush is out of office and that is where the committee seems to be rooted in politics," he said. "Certainly there are people in this world more deserving than President Obama."

• Republican Party Chairman Michael Steele also didn't congratulate the president for claiming the coveted prize.

• "It is unfortunate that the president's star power has outshined tireless advocates who have made real achievements working towards peace and human rights," he said. "One thing is certain -- President Obama won't be receiving any awards from Americans for job creation, fiscal responsibility, or backing up rhetoric with concrete action."

• "What has President Obama actually accomplished?" ~ Michael Steele

• "My first opinion is that he got it because he's black. What did he do that was so great? He hasn't even finished office yet." ~ A hospital worker on Broklyn

• "Obama gives speeches trashing his own country and he gets a prize for it," said conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh.

• "It looks less like an objective award than it does a political endorsement," said William Jelani Cobb, a history professor at Spelman College in Atlanta.
  

I'm waiting for the howls about how President Obama was campaigning of the Nobel Peace Prize when he should have been working on Health Care or sending troops to Afghanistan.

It seems to me this country is losing all perspective on life and what it means to be happy with in seeing another person honored. Sour grapes never taste good and never go down well. I do understand the usefulness of vinegar but I do not understand people who cheer when the loss of an opportunity to create jobs (the Olympics) is cheered and the honor of having our President awarded the Nobel Peace Prize id devalued and booed.

Should our president be derided because he and his expressed vision has world wide appeal as if it's appeasement rather than a call for us all to be better people and citizens of our community, state, country and the world.

President Obama won the Noble Peace Prize for the hope he has expressed and the vision he is working toward, not because he is "Not George Bush." Which, by the way, is a slap at George Bush and the party that supported him for eight years and now cant say "Ronald Reagan " enough.

Has the party of Lincoln become the party of Stromboli?

Alan Grayson - The New Dude

In case you missed it here is a great presentation using simple charts.




CNN got an earful when they repeated the Republican demand for an apology.



So Alan did apologize on the floor of the house.




I think we need more Grayson and less Conrad and Baucus

From a Dr. Friend

One of my friends is a Doctor and he sent me this thought provoking message for our Republican't friends and all the Libertarian Anarchists who hate government. Maybe they hate government because when they run the government they run it into the ground economically and spiritually.

Enjoy

A Day in the Life of Joe Middle-Class Republican by John Gray

Joe gets up at 6:00am to prepare his morning coffee. He fills his pot full of good clean drinking water because some liberal fought for minimum water quality standards. He takes his daily medication with his first swallow of coffee. His medications are safe to take because some liberal fought to insure their safety and work as advertised.

All but $10.00 of his medications are paid for by his employers medical plan because some liberal union workers fought their employers for paid medical insurance, now Joe gets it too. He prepares his morning breakfast, bacon and eggs this day. Joe’s bacon is safe to eat because some liberal fought for laws to regulate the meat packing industry.

Joe takes his morning shower reaching for his shampoo; His bottle is properly labeled with every ingredient and the amount of its contents because some liberal fought for his right to know what he was putting on his body and how much it contained. Joe dresses, walks outside and takes a deep breath. The air he breathes is clean because some tree hugging liberal fought for laws to stop industries from polluting our air. He walks to the subway station for his government subsidized ride to work; it saves him considerable money in parking and transportation fees. You see, some liberal fought for affordable public transportation, which gives everyone the opportunity to be a contributor.

Joe begins his work day; he has a good job with excellent pay, medicals benefits, retirement, paid holidays and vacation because some liberal union members fought and died for these working standards. Joe’s employer pays these standards because Joe’s employer doesn’t want his employees to call the union. If Joe is hurt on the job or becomes unemployed he’ll get a worker compensation or unemployment check because some liberal didn’t think he should lose his home because of his temporary misfortune.

Its noon time, Joe needs to make a Bank Deposit so he can pay some bills. Joe’s deposit is federally insured by the FSLIC because some liberal wanted to protect Joe’s money from unscrupulous bankers who ruined the banking system before the depression.

Joe has to pay his Fannie Mae underwritten Mortgage and his below market federal student loan because some stupid liberal decided that Joe and the government would be better off if he was educated and earned more money over his life-time.

Joe is home from work, he plans to visit his father this evening at his farm home in the country. He gets in his car for the drive to dads; his car is among the safest in the world because some liberal fought for car safety standards. He arrives at his boyhood home. He was the third generation to live in the house financed by Farmers Home Administration because bankers didn’t want to make rural loans. The house didn’t have electric until some big government liberal stuck his nose where it didn’t belong and demanded rural electrification. (Those rural Republican’s would still be sitting in the dark)

He is happy to see his dad who is now retired. His dad lives on Social Security and his union pension because some liberal made sure he could take care of himself so Joe wouldn’t have to. After his visit with dad he gets back in his car for the ride home.

He turns on a radio talk show, the host’s keeps saying that liberals are bad and conservatives are good. (He doesn’t tell Joe that his beloved Republicans have fought against every protection and benefit Joe enjoys throughout his day) Joe agrees, “We don’t need those big government liberals ruining our lives; after all, I’m a selfmade man who believes everyone should take care of themselves, just like I have"

Republican'ts in the UK - Yikes!!!

The logic of the "Me Generation" shows it's ugly face again. Howard Jarvis' Prop 13 killed education in California and now the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) is striking out at our future in the same way. The net effect would be the dumbing down of the UK much like the destruction of education in the US. No wonder they constantly strike out at the educated just as Hitler did. I suspect it's pretty hard to enslave the enlightened.

The irony is that the wealthy do see the value of education for their children, just not for those who cannot afford the costs.

Enrollment will decline for fear of accumulating debt. Tuition fees had long held at £1,000 until it went up to Enrollment will decline for fear of accumulating debt. Tuition fees had long held at £1,000 until it went up to £3000 in 2006.

“Tuition fees make it harder for the working class portion of the public to further their education,” said Rebecca Glithero, a student. “If it wasn’t for student loans, only the upper classes or those who could afford it, would be able to attend university, especially as the cost of tuition fees are on the rise.” in 2006 and now the CBI wants the cost to rise to £5000.



Headline:
Students should pay higher fees, says CBI
Simon Lambert published in This is Money
21 September 2009


Students should pay higher fees, more interest on loans and get less grants says a new report by business bosses that has been backed by leading universities.

Tuition fees could rise from £3,000 per year to £5,000, while graduates should pay a market rate of interest on their debt, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

The report has been backed by the Russell Group of 20 leading universities but attacked by Million+, which represents newer universities, and the students' union.

The CBI said that businesses also had a part to play in improving the system and helping families by sponsoring more people through university.

It recommended the target for 50% of 18-30 year-olds participating in highr education should be dropped for the time being.

The National Union of Students (NUS) said it was 'astonished' at the report, and branded its recommendations offensive.

Middle-income families would be hardest hit by the proposals, as above a set threshold they would not qualify for any grants or interest rate subsidies on loans.

The CBI plans come as the government prepares for a major review of tuition fees that will begin this autumn but not report until after the general election.

It recommends restricting maintenance grants and charging the government's market rate of borrowing as the interest rate on loan balances, rather than the current system that maintains real value by setting them at the retail prices index measure of inflation.

The report by a CBI Task Force adds that a funding crisis facing the UK and universities means there is 'little choice but to plan to raise student contributions'. It says evidence from vice-chancellors suggests fees of up to £5,000 per year would not put students off.

All savings should be ring-fenced for universities and the system changed as soon as possible for new students. The report notes that 25% of public funding going to higher education is spent on student support, and the UK has one of the most generous levels of support in the world ~ This is Money


“Tuition fees make it harder for the working class portion of the public to further their education,” said Rebecca Glithero, a student. “If it wasn’t for student loans, only the upper classes or those who could afford it, would be able to attend university, especially as the cost of tuition fees are on the rise.”

Yes, the same is hasppening here in the US.

At prestigious universities around the country, from flagship state colleges to the Ivy League, more and more students from upper-income families are edging out those from the middle class, according to university data.

The change is fast becoming one of the biggest issues in higher education.

More members of this year's freshman class at the University of Michigan have parents making at least $200,000 a year than have parents making less than the national median of about $53,000, according to a survey of Michigan students. At the most selective private universities across the country, more fathers of freshmen are doctors than are hourly workers, teachers, clergy members, farmers or members of the military ? combined.

Experts say the change in the student population is a result of both steep tuition increases and the phenomenal efforts many wealthy parents put into preparing their children to apply to the best schools. It is easy to see here, where BMW 3-series sedans are everywhere and students pay up to $800 a month to live off campus, enough to rent an entire house in parts of Michigan. ~ New York Times

Is it any wonder the Republican't Party is also against any kind of meaningful Health Care Plan? Reminds me of the old "Barefoot and Pregnant" statement about keeping women "in their place." The new thing is keeping the populist rabble "in their place" by keeping them "dumb and sick with no job."

This is no game folks it's our future.

Will Farrel - Something Terrible is Happening

Where are our priorities when we want to throw insurance company executives out on the street to live like the ordinary rabble instead of keeping the Yacht industry rolling, what about the Private Exclusive Golf courses and Real Estate market for multi-million dollar estates? What a shame to expect these people to live on only 9,000% of the average guy's salary when they have so much responsibility to their even wealthier stockholders.

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

True Health Care Reform D.O.A. - A Fable?

Hope is a good thing but alone without persistence is a matter of luck. The thing the opposition doesn't understand is that people with hope deep inside actually will follow through.

The ant can't be bothered with the size of his/her task when it finds a spider that was D.O.A. when it was found. It drags its object little by little until it reaches home. It persistent ant works rests and works some more.

The thing about the ant is that it persists and exists not just for itself but for it's community. The ant never questions what the other ants are doing. It doesn't quit because another ant is just walking around goofing off. The ant will share the spider with the nest. If it were too heavy the ant would disassemble the spider and haul it piece by piece but it will never give up.

This tiny creature is, to paraphrase Shakespeare, "What a piece of work is a ant, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action..."

So that's how it is with Health Care. Dead on arrival from the Senate Finance Committee that unlike the ant decided the issue was too big and gave it up for another smaller morsel that, as it turns out was poisoned.

Perhaps the Congress can take it apart and get most of it back to the nest. All along Barack Obama has kept pulling and if we really want it dragged home perhaps we should help with calls, letters and expressions of hope backed with the persistence of belief in our country.

I'd love to see the headlines read "President Obama Drags Health Care Across the Line"

Let's Just Stop Writing Laws

Why write any laws and do away with government altogether. I'm sure the selective Republicant's would love that, and the Libertarians would as well. Our country was not based on anarchy and we are a governmental system. That government was meant to support our freedoms with a set of common laws. While there were Christians in those who founded America they were not like some of the "with us or against us" faiths but were supportive of all faiths or lack thereof. So if we follow that logic that says illegals will sign up anyway why not just take what we want until we are stopped by someone stronger and better armed.

While I certainly understand the argument made, I have to say the bill has specific language barring illegal immigrants from using the health plan. If illegal immigrants go to a hospital right now what would happen in an emergency situation? Right they would be cared for like anyone else.

This plan is definitive and excludes illegal immigrants and any breaking of the law is like any other illegal act. Should we not have theft laws because some people will still steal?

In the meantime legal Americans who have worked hard and lost coverage due to a layoff can still be covered. Why do some fight so hard to exclude the already excluded and in the process harm their fellow American elderly, children and everyone in between.

"The language of the health care bill, in regard to coverage of illegal immigrants, is obscure and can be understood to cover illegal immigrants but also to exclude them. President Obama assures the American people that illegal immigrants will not be covered; however, recently the House Ways and Means Committee rejected an amendment that would have required the government to verify that those enrolling in the "public plan" are not illegal immigrants.

Without a system in place to verify an individual’s immigration status, how will we identify those here illegally? We can’t, that may just be the point." ~ Christina Wijfjes-Smit Mesa Independent Examiner

This is what the White House communicated:

"Undocumented immigrants would not be able to buy private insurance on the exchange. Those who are lawfully present in this country would be able to participate.

Undocumented immigrants would be able to buy insurance in the non-exchange private market, just as they do today. That market will shrink as the exchange takes hold, but it will still exist and will be subject to reforms such as the bans on pre-existing conditions and caps.

Verification will be required when purchasing health insurance on the exchange. One option is the SAVE program (Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements) which states currently use to make sure that undocumented immigrants don't participate in safety-net programs for which they are ineligible.

There would be no change in the law that requires emergency rooms to treat people who need emergency care, including undocumented immigrants. There is already a federal grant program that compensates states for emergency room costs associated with treatment of undocumented immigrants, a provision sponsored by a Republican lawmaker." ~ Domenico Montanaro MSNBC First Read

So let's Just Stop Writing Any Laws

Better than Cash for Clunkers - A laugh at cars

Very clever



An oldie



The end is great



Bait and Switch



Safety First

The "Bad" Joe Wilson

Of the 535 members of Congress one acts like a dope and carries the news for at least 2 days maybe more. Has the news services gone mad? Our President made a major speech to Congress appealing to our country and it's leaders to address one of the most pressing, persistent and pertinent issues of our times and the air waves both liberal and conservative media forget the speech and deluge us with the impulsive act of an ill informed mind of people like Joe Wilson (not the responsible and informed Joe Wilson) but a man who feeds on hate.

Look at the hits and News results for Joe Wilson

Times Online Obama Doesn't Want to Linger on Joe Wilson‎ - 1 hour ago

Joe Wilson to the White House for a few beers any time soon. ... shouted that Obama was a "liar" during the president's speech to Congress Wednesday night. ...

U.S. News & World Report - 14454 related articles »

14,454 hits on one inane person

Joe Wilson: The shout of "You lie!" by Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., during the president's speech on health care was a significant break in decorum.

Barack Obama: "I'm a big believer that we all make mistakes," Obama said in acknowledging the apology from Wilson. "I do think that, as I said last night, we have to get to the point where we can have a conversation about big important issues that matter to the American people without vitriol, without name-calling, without the assumption of the worst of other people's motives."

The news should be ashamed as should the "Liberal" shows like Keith Olberman and Ed Schultz and even Rachael Maddow for even trying to rebut that fool. Then there are those who glorify this man like Eric Cantor who fans the flames and Rush and the talk show anti-anything-good-for-the-average-person street corner preachers who teach hate for our countries leaders daily. They don't care about the truth if they can gain an advantage or avert our attention. All they do is feed the fire and give one man who is 0.1869% of Congress, at that he only represents 54% of the vote in one District 2 of South Carolina. While I do believe everyone's view is important it shouldn't overshadow the bigger and more important issue, health care.

So if I got this right that is 0.10% or .0001 of our country dominating the President's message, a President that was elected by 53% of our country. So if we do another calculation President Obama received 66,882,230 votes while Wilson received 184,l583 or 0.00276 of the President's Mandate.

So I say we ignore the ignorant rant of a man who is sincere but totally wrong.

This man uses a campaign ad to vilify the very people who supported the party he represents and says he is working for the "little guy" while voting for the very policies that deregulated and gutted rules for financial institutions.

My personal action is to make this the last words I speak or listen to about the "wrong" Joe Wilson.

Can we afford half "S" change

I wonder how much people believe in the "Right to Life" when they choose to ruin peoples lives, health, bankruptcy, self-esteem and emotional well-being in order to keep President Obama from Health Care Reform.

I find it incredulous that while most people want this reform with the "Government" option yet the press and some politicians seem unaware of those wishes. If the listen only to the wildly vocal fringe they will eventually find out it is the average person who will vent their anger at the polls next election.

Do they not understand the "Government" option is already the compromise and to move one inch closer for the Republican Party's appeasement is without value. They have a different definition of Bipartisan that means "do it my way."

I say forget them and put forth a strong bill and well defined plan that exposes them to the public.

In the meantime help the average person survive in these selfish and self centered times.

What I Wish

So let me get this correct people don't want their children "indoctrinated" so they indoctrinate them to not trust their President? Doesn't make sense.

No One Expects The Spanish Inquisition! or do they?

Indoctrination

in·doc·tri·nate (ĭn-dŏk‘tra-nāt‘)
tr.v., -nat·ed, -nat·ing, -nates.

1. To instruct in a body of doctrine or principles.
2. To imbue with a partisan or ideological point of view.

indoctrination in·doc‘tri·na‘tion n.



I wish people who think that democracy means they should always get their wishes would just hold their breath. On NPR one person writes that there is no place in our schools for the president or other political people to talk. Having the President talk to students about working hard in school is not subversive. I think teaching alienation of children from their government is vastly more subversive than a government run Health Plan or enabling equality of pay between ment and women.

Do these people realize where George Bush was during the attacks on 9/11? I know some have made fun of George's reaction but it was totally understandable and the fact that he was interacting with school children was admirable.

Wharever hatred of a party or president there is no excuse for the stupidity being exhibited by people who strike out against clouds that look like boulders.

Whose Death Panel was that?

Who is already rationing Health Care and who will let it continue? The Senate Finance Committee and Republicans have taken a good plan and destroyed it and we the people are letting it happen by throwing up our hands and believing there is nothing we can do.

It big news comes from the medical community - The California Nurses Association. I know, from my time as Credit manager at a hospital, that this rings true. The insurance industry will give all kinds of excuses for rejecting claims. Preexisting conditions, some of the claims were later paid, the insurance expired but in the end it's that a large percentage of "covered" individuals got rejected. I know someone whose personal insurance (self employed) pays a very large premium for a policy with a $3,000 deductible - each claim not per year:

"Six of the state’s largest insurers rejected 45.7 million claims for medical care, or 22% of all claims, from 2002 to June 30, 2009, according to the California Nurses Assn.’s analysis of data submitted to regulators by the companies.

The rejection rates ranged from a high of 39.6% for PacifiCare to 6.5% for Aetna for the first half of 2009. Cigna denied 33%, and Health Net 30%.

Getting health insurers to pay their fair share of medical claims can be as much of a headache for physicians as it is for patients, said Rebecca Patchin, an anesthesiologist at Loma Linda University and board chairwoman of the American Medical Assn. She said each insurer has a different set of obscure, bureaucratic rules for processing and paying medical claims that result in as much as $210 billion of unnecessary cost annually, studies have shown."

In another Story I found this:

"More than one of every five requests for medical claims for insured patients, even when recommended by a patient's physician, are rejected by California's largest private insurers, amounting to very real death panels in practice daily in the nation's biggest state, according to data released today by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee.

PacifiCare denied 40 percent of all California claims in the first six months of 2009. Cigna, which gained notoriety two years ago for denying a liver transplant to 17-year-old Nataline Sarkisyan of Northridge, Calif. and then reversing itself, tragically too late to save her life, was still rejecting one-third of all claims for the first half of 2009.


Kaiser Permanente, which denied 28 percent of all claims in the first half of 2009, was one of two systems to reject options for radiation and chemotherapy for 57-year-old Bob Scott of Sacramento after his diagnosis of a brain tumor in 2005. The reason cited was his age, says wife Cheryl Scott, RN. "He had been in perfect health all of his life. This was his first problem other than a sprained ankle. He died six months later."

"The United States remains the only country in the industrialized world where human lives are sacrificed for private profit, a national disgrace that seems on the verge of perpetuation," she said."

Glen Beck - The New Howard Beale Sans Brain

I guess I like movies with a thought provoking theme and Paddy Chayefsky was a master at attacking the lunacy of life and the ability of demented people to gain power and even prestige. With Hospital it's the incompetency, "corporate doctor" and the burned out Dr. Bock.

With "Network" it's the corporation led by Ned Beatty as the Diabolical Chairman of the Board, in possibly the best ever movie scene, telling Howard Beale (the newscaster) he (Beatty) is God.

This is after Howard Beale has a meltdown on-air and collapses. At this point Faye Dunaway from the "Entertainment" division of the Network sees the ratings and takes power from the

"News" division and keeps Beale in all his suicidal and lunatic tendencies in his regular spot on-air. It doesn't end well for either Howard Beale or the public good and the "News" disappears into the past for ratings and corporate agendas.

So that was fiction and now for real we get Glen Beck.

This idiot actually called the President of the United States a racist. Glen Beck a person I've never watched on TV - until tonight. I thought Keith Olberman was just being a liberal jokester when he makes fun of Beck on Countdown with Keith Olberman. I am getting tired of hearing about Limbaugh, Beck, Coulter, Palin and Michele Bachmann.

So trying to be fair I listened to Glen Beck tonight with an open mind.

The man (benefit of the doubt) is a street corner preacher, nut case, rebel without a clue or a screw. I guess the screw was loose. He ranted the almost entire time about the drought in California being caused by environmentalists and how he doesn't believe in environmental reasons. All this despite the explosive population growth, the fact that little effort has been made to conserve water. Of course he jumps on the environmentalists and the Delta Smelt an endangered fish as the whole cause of the problem.

Simple-minded and simplistic but not as funny as it should be because Beck then incites anger in his audience about environmentalism. I'm not a strict and fervent environmentalist but I do know much of what we learn about our planet and human existence on it comes from that discipline. I don't like "pick and choose" minds who twist logic, spin a the truth and promote violent anger.

Beck's other hatred filled diatribe was against the National Endowment for the Arts. Does he really think all art is as extreme as Andres Serrano or Robert Maplethorpe? Does he think about all the fine art enabled by the NEA, the youth programs, the schools and careers enabled by this fine organization.

It all is coming back on him as one executive has disclosed so far Beck's show had a total of thirty-three sponsors pull out because of his Obama remarks.

I've watched Glen Beck for my one and only time.

Glen Beck must not realize that hacking into a federal computer system is a crime and has been for a long time. Disclaimers are notorious on the internet and with computer software.



Every system and web site on the web can gather information from your computer or put information on your computer if not protected. Poor Glen sees a conspiracy everywhere it's a little like the clinical definition of P-A-R-A-N-O-I-A.

One can only hope one day Glen understands that being seen on TV and pushing fear buttons of unhinged people can also endanger his own health.

ps Keith Olberman please stop giving these guys air time!!!

Health Care in the US - The Facts

Health Care in the US - The Facts from Jason Summers Blog

http://www.jasonsummers.org/we-need-french-healthcare/

"
• 46 million Americans are currently without health insurance;
• 60 million Americans, both insured and uninsured, have inadequate access to primary care due to a shortage of physicians and other health service providers in their community;
• 100 million Americans have no insurance to cover dental needs;
• 116 million adults, nearly two-thirds of all non-seniors, struggled to pay medical bills, went without needed care because of cost, were uninsured for a time, or were underinsured in the last year;
• The United States spends $2.3 trillion each year on health care, 16 percent of its Gross Domestic Product;
• Americans spend $7,129 per person on health care, 50 percent more than other industrialized countries, including those with universal care;
• The U.S. does not get what it pays for. We rank among the lowest in the health outcome rankings of developed countries, and on several major indices rank below some third-world nations;
• The number of health insurance industry bureaucrats has grown at 25 times the growth of physicians in the past 30 years;
• In 2006, the six largest insurance companies made $11 billion in profits even after paying for direct health care costs, administrative costs and marketing costs."

Make Health Care for All a National Priority

Who are they kidding:

No Forms

• No Forms
• No Pre-existing conditions
• No billing
• No Insurance Company telling your Doctor what to do
• One provider to deal with health care costs
• No death squads
  
• Remember no coverage or poor coverage kills
• Profits held in check against overcharging

Remember not all problems with costs are not caused by the insurance industry. The entire Health Care delivery system if fraught with excessive costs.

I had a dentist who bought protective plastic glasses for patients from Home Depot instead of from the medical supplier because the cost was 10% less from Home Depot. The law of supply and demand should never be the rule in matters of life and death or good health otherwise costs would skyrocket - which they have in a "For Profit Health Care System."

Polls and Deception

So what does this poll tell you? It looks to me President Obama's Approval rating is very high. Inside the numbers I find it interesting that FOX News found higher ratings for President Obama than NBC. Weird Times!

So what conclusion can I draw (Imagine)? President Obama is trying so hard to satisfy the right he may have disenchanted the left and to some extent the center.

President Obama Job Approval	Approve	Disapprove	Difference
RCP Average	59.6	33.2	26.4
CBS News/NY Times	63	26	37
NBC News/Wall St. Jrnl	56	34	22
Gallup	61	32	29
Rasmussen Reports	56	43	13
FOX News	62	31	31

I find it interesting that Congress has taken the "Public Option" off of the table when polls show over 70% of those polled want the "Public Option" and have come to distrust the Insurance "Private Option" and want change. I think if we were talking about "Tea Parties" this Health Care issue has truly become taxation without representation. Congress no longer appears to be listening to the wishes of their constituencies but rather trying to propagandize in support of the Insurance Companies.

I thought Feudalism went out years ago when the United States were formed yet Congress and the Coalition of the Greedy seem to feel they know better.

Polls are not always innacurate and I went to Real Clear Politics Polls often during the Presidential Election and guess what, they were pretty good. The problem is when presented by the spin doctors or the slanted eye (either left or right) the interpreted version isn't always correct.

Renaming the Democratic Party

The other political party is trying to change the re-name of the democratic party as the Democrat Socialist Party.

I had to crack up thinking about John Boner, Michael Steal, Rushing Limpbaugh, Lindsay Graham-Cracker, Gitch McConnell, Erect Can't-or, Bobby Gruntle, Sitting in a room trying to decide how best to deceive the general public one more time.

That Party is the one that uses racism to get poor whites in the South that it's OK to ship their jobs overseas and make sure they can't get health care, jobs or decent roads. It's the party that said they would lower taxes and ended up lowering taxes for the very wealthy while increasing the burden for the middle class and lower income people while shifting the burden of many local projects and education from the federal government to the states.

That party just can't seem to see their own demise at the hands of extreme religious, racist and survivalists factions.

That party can't seem to understand they have lost their ability to participate in the public dialogue and help find solutions to problems because the only problem they see is their own loss of respect by the public.

That party can't seem to see that they are losing the very good people who could possibly save the party from their own stupidity. They deride Colin Powell, Charlie Crist, Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe and have already run off Arlen Specter.

My Conclusion the new name for that party since they like Tea parties is just add the "T" to their name and become the:

Republican't Party

Tortured Logic

The CIA Inspector General’s report found that the CIA water boarded Khalid Sheikh Mohammed 183 times in March 2003 and Abu Zubaydah 83 times in August 2002.

Now let's let those dates sink in -

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was captured in Rawalpindi, Pakistan on March 1, 2003 and immediately interrogated being water boarded 183 times that month.


Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was water boarded about six times a day.

On March 28, 2002, CIA and FBI agents, in conjunction with Pakistani intelligence services, raided several safe houses in Pakistan looking for terrorists and members of al-Qaeda. Abu Zubaydah was apprehended from one of the targeted safe houses in Faisalabad, Pakistan

Abu Zubaydah was water boarded about three times a day.

"Dick" Cheney stated recently that we quashed several attempts to attack the U.S. because of that torture. He boasts 7.5 years of no attacks since 9/11. Yet he seems to have conveniently failed to mention the Bush Administration was warned about the danger from Bin Ladin and AlQaeda before taking office and while in office before 9/11. Beyond that the war in Iraq has ended up with the deaths of 4,200 US Troops and over 91,000 Iraqi citizens all comming after 9/11 not to mention the the horror of those families at home and the terror imposed by the administration "selling the war."

Something never mentioned by any of those covering the torture conversation is the true reason to disregard all mention of plots foiled as "Dick" loves to mention (sans truth) is that once these players, especially KSM, were captured AlQaeda scuttled or pushed back their plans because they couldn't count on KSM or Abu Zubaydah not talking.

Just the capture of KSM would have killed all plans.

Of course all of my tortured logic is moot because:

Water boarding IS torture
These two men alone we tortured over 260 times
Whoever approved the torture is guilty
"Dick" said he approved of the torture
"Dick" and George ignored the law
"Dick" and George should be tried in court.

I thought republican'ts ...

Hated Civil Disobedience - "Dick" Cheney approved of Torture when he knew it was against the law but thought it was okay to do it anyway.

Didn't believe in Growing the size of Government - George "Shrub" Bush not only bloated the budget but managed to move the cost of the war out of the budget.

Abhored Activist Judges - Appointed Anton Scalia, John Roberts, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas who immediately become activists for conservative causes ignoring past rulings.

Believe in Family Values - Proving that divorce and trophy wives are cool

Believe in Fiscal Responsibility - All this while deregulating the banking industry causing the worst fiscal crisis in my long lifetime.

Believe in and Respect the Military - They went into a war under manned and ill equipped against the advice of military leaders and intelligence.

Believe in being tough on Terrorists and Terrorism - They ignored the advice of Richard Clarke that Bin Laden was determined to attack within the U.S.

Wanted to Lower Taxes - But only for Big Business not the Middle Calss or the poor.

Believe in Hard Work - but they mostly live on investments and outsource to other countries or layoff workers on any whim.

... and the beat goes on

How Sad for America.

Did we torture captured terrorists/enemy combatants to force them to provide a link between Al-Qaeda and Sadam Hussein?

Couldn't Bush "The Shrub"/"Dick" Cheney/"Rummy"/ "Maddington" Addington/"Scooter" Libby/"Green Slime" Wolfowitz/Richard "before swine" Perle/ Doug "eye before Eat" Feith/ John "Grumpy" Bolton/"un"Frank Gaffney A.K.A. "The Eyebrow" et. al. just continued to lie?

I suppose there would be some who they needed to support the War in Iraq that would ask why? My guess is Colin Powell was lied to early and often. Easy sales were Presidential Medal of Freedom winners Tommy Franks, George Tenet, L. Paul Bremer (please promise to keep what you know under your hat) who all toed the line like good lap dogs. I know all have had distinguished careers and one little mistake in judgement under the glare of the Lord of Darkness shouldn't disgrace them - too much.

What in the world were we all thinking in our collective states of shock after 911 to buy the bill of goods the president and his henchmen sold us. What's even sadder is the possibility it was all done behind the President's back by a cabal led by Dick Cheney. The ex President may just be the one who finally gives testimony that convicts the others. Wouldn't that be ironic! George Bush reclaims his legacy by proving he was duped by the others.

Perhaps his one courageous act will be after he is out of office and recognizes the damage to the United States done by evil men who torture to elicit lies and show so little respect for average Americans they lied with impunity to their own "base" whipping them into a bloodthirsty mob. How sad for America.

Ruben, Ruben I've been thinking (Have you)

In a Ruben Navarette Jr. editorial in the San Diego Union-Tribune via SFGate some great logic appears right before our eyes. It's the old shift and transform, smoke and mirrors trick. What thrills me so much is it's so easy to see. Here is how it works.

1. Take an event (Torture justification)
2. Present a fact (Memos by Administration Attorneys)
3. Sidestep (Argue that Investigation hampers the C.I.A.)
4. Brand the Opposition (Those who want an investigation as "political" and "trying to settle old scores" or "seeking perverse satisfaction")
5. Close (Congratulate Barack Obama for not prosecuting those who "followed orders")

"While thrilled about the disclosure, many on the left are furious over the reluctance to prosecute.

Such a reaction is unfair. Obama was right to release the four memos and also right not to prosecute CIA officials who acted with authorization from superiors. You'll never convince the extremes - on both right and left - but both decisions serve our national interest.

Americans should not use truth commissions and political show trials to settle old scores, even if it would - in this case - give the Bush-haters some perverse satisfaction. What it would certainly do, as former officials in the Bush administration and others have said in recent days, is hamper the work of the CIA by making agency operatives afraid they could be punished depending on the prevailing political winds." ~ Ruben Navarette Jr., San Diego Union-Tribune

But Ruben you missed a spot.

Barack Obama never said there was be no crime.
Barack Obama never said there would be no investigation.
Barack Obama never said there wasn't wrongdoing.
Barack Obama never said anything about what Eric Holder and the justice department would do.

Don't gloat too soon Ruben it's not political revenge. This is really about something America believed strongly enough we prosecuted Japanese soldiers for using the waterboarding method against American soldiers in WW II. Perhaps you should read some very good reporting in the New York Times to gain some real perspective before you lecture anyone else like this:

"Those who serve our country, often at great personal sacrifice and against impossible odds, should be proud. And when elected officials simply do the right thing rather than manipulate public perception by making themselves look good and others look bad, they provide a kind of leadership of which we can all be proud." ~ Ruben Navarette Jr., San Diego Union-Tribune

Those who served our country against all odds should include our soldiers who have been tortured by countries who ignored the Geneva Convention. All policemen, firemen, Coast Guard, Navy, Marines and Army personnel know that they are subject to the laws of the land. Even the President and Vice President, Congress should know they are not above the law no matter how much good they have done at other times in their lives.

What a [Dick] Cheney

Dick Cheney is a forthright man there is no doubt but then again I once heard an interview with Jeffrey Dahmer that was also forthright. Dick said in a recent interview "

But what I find disturbing is the extent to which he has gone to Europe, for example, and seemed to apologize profusely in Europe, and then to Mexico, and apologize there, and so forth.

And I think you have to be very careful. The world outside there, both our friends and our foes, will be quick to take advantage of a situation if they think they're dealing with a weak president or one who is not going to stand up and aggressively defend America's interests.

The United States provides most of the leadership in the world. We have for a long time. And I don't think we've got much to apologize for. You can have a debate about that. But the bottom line is that, you know, when you go to Europe and deal with our European friends and allies, some things they do very well, some things they don't.

Sometimes it's important that a president speak directly and forthrightly to our European friends. And you don't get there if you're so busy apologizing for past U.S. behavior." ~ Fox News

Now that makes Dick a forthright man but it also shows his recalcitrance regarding the illegal torture and wiretapping he so often condones as "strong on terrorism." If he means he has become a terrorist he is right. If he means effectively fighting terrorism nothing could be further from the truth.

Strength doesn't come from proving you can be more brutal than your opposition but by proving you can outsmart your opposition. All Dick and George did was prove they wallow in the mud just as well as Osama.

The world is looking for leadership (Leadership meaning the ability to get others to follow) and Barack is not apologizing to Europe, South America or any one else including Antarctica. Barack is providing a direction for others to follow and they are following the United States in far larger numbers than ever before.

So Dick please get a grip on reality.