A terrible tragedy

Sunday an Iowa mother of 15 died in an auto accident.  She was a blogger, a Christian, and an adoptive parent of special needs children.

http://aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com/2014/06/esthers-mom.html

https://sites.google.com/a/windandfire.org/jennygroothuis/

Memorial fund website.

How sensitive do doctors need to be to the needs of transgendered?

According to the Williams Institute review conducted in April 2011, approximately 3.80 % of American adults identify themselves being in the LGBT community; wherein, (1.70%) identify as lesbian or gay, (1.80%) bisexual, and (0.30%) transgender, which corresponds to approximately 9 million adult^[1] Americans as of the 2010 census. (Wikipedia)

If our future doctors know more about the emotional needs and problems of the transgendered than how to help patients cope with depression, dementia or terminal diseases, here's an example from a med school ethics class. Also a good look at the discrimination and bullying of Christians in medical school. http://www.theamericanconservative.com/dreher/transgender-christian-doctor/

“This week in my medical school we began the ethics portion of my medical school’s curriculum.  This week, the main learning points were on Human Sexuality, Emotional Intelligence (Empathy), and Memory and Learning (How to deal with patients with dementia, learning disabilities, autism etc.). You might be interested to know that the only required classes were on Human Sexuality, with one of them being a Transgender panel. All the other classes were optional attendance; they covered topics such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and how to empathize with your patients. CBT is a very common helpful tool that can be used to treat everything from depression and anxiety to bipolar disorder. However, despite the importance of emotional intelligence and memory and learning, over half of the material was about human sexuality — and over half of the human sexuality content was about how to treat LGBT patients.”

Workplace awards for performance

Are you proud your contributions are being used for abortions? Ever wonder how a counselor at Aurora “exceeds” abortion visits? Do you think she’s suggesting other options?  Discussing the health hazards? Suggesting that abstinence might be an option?  That the client need not submit to the boyfriend’s demand that she abort? If the client is underage, do you suppose this will be reported to the police?  If she doesn’t speak English and brings in an “interpreter, do you suppose Aurora's staffer will suspect she’s been trafficked from another country and needs to quickly abort to get back on the pimp’s payroll? If the client seems conflicted, do you really think Aurora counselors will refer the client to an adoption service? Will she notice the teen has a pushy Mom insisting on abortion or she’ll be put on the street? Will the client tell the counselor about the abuse of her step-father, or will she just get signed up for a quicky abortion and sent home home alone to pass a bloody mess in the toilet?

Why we have an income gap in the U.S.--marriage

The Census figures income by "household." The top 2% of households has an income of $250,000+.  But those households are racially different.  The wealthiest households in the U.S. are Asian (they also have the largest households). 4.2% of Asian households are in the $250,000+ group; 2.1% of white households; .9% of Hispanics; and .6% of blacks. What else isn't equal?  Married couple households. Asian households are 63.2% married; whites 58.1%; Hispanics 55.1%; and 34.8% blacks. It's probably basic math, but two workers make more than one. 64% of college graduates are married, compared to 48% of high school graduates; in 1960 the difference was 76% and 72%. But it’s also apparent that there are some very wealthy, unmarried, single households not sharing their wealth with anyone.

http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0693.pdf

Also, whites have the lowest college enrollment of all ethnic groups in the U.S. The number of female Americans enrolled in college was significantly higher than the number of males (11.3 million versus 8.6 million). That was not only due to higher population figures for females: 7.4% of the 3+ female population was enrolled in college, compared to 5.9% of the 3+ male population.

Black Americans demonstrated higher-than-average college enrollment rates, at 8% of the 3+ population – equaling just over 3 million enrolled. Female black Americans had a substantially higher enrollment rate (9.2% of the 3+ population) than their male counterparts (6.5%).

Non-Hispanic whites had the lowest enrollment rates. 6.2% of the 3+ group was enrolled in college last year, with females outpacing males (6.8% vs. 5.5%). A total of 11.65 million were enrolled in college.

http://www.marketingcharts.com/wp/traditional/us-college-student-demographics-in-2012-36555/

Y’all come, President Obama

When they heard in Central America that the United States had a "dream act" they decided to send the kids to enroll. This massive swamping of our border has nothing to do with violence in their own countries. They are fleeing from, they are fleeing to. I'm sure someone outside the administration will be blamed, and Americans who object will be called cruel and heartless.

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/brittany-m-hughes/dream-act-i-saw-it-sure-doesnt-look-ellis-island

http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-TV/2014/06/10/Issa-Childern-Will-Die-Because-of-Obamas-Executive-Order

Don’t blame President Obama!

Don't blame President Obama!
1.  The law schools were adrift before he was born.  Jurists were substituting opinion and passion for knowledge and precedent before he was an implanted embryo in his unmarried teenager mother.  Whether it’s the 9th circuit or the Supremes, don’t blame the President for the mess lawyers have made.  He’s a “constitutional lawyer” who’s been taught only what his professors knew.

2.  Don’t blame Obama or any of the Presidents since Wilson for the failures of American education. John Dewey who pioneered social outcome, progressive education was born over 100 years before Obama.  Progressive education was incubated and thrived at America’s universities, and then was passed on into the general education system to meet social and political goals.  That social goals are more important than math or science or even western civilization can‘t even be put at the feet of Presidents Bush, Clinton or Carter, who created the Department of Education, not even Eisenhower who ordered the schools desegregated, so don‘t lay that expensive, overfed turkey on Obama‘s plate.

3.  Don’t blame the President for moral and ethical failures of the church and family. The churches began buying into 19th century scholars at seminaries and universities challenging the truth, history and moral teachings of the Bible well over 100 years before his grandparents who raised him became agnostics and Jim Wallis‘ grandparents were probably still Bible thumpers.  And those academicians and theologians were pointing back to theories and challenges centuries before them cooked up by Germans.

Collecting my Thoughts, January 26, 2012

Does Netflix take the place of TV?

I was surprised this week to hear one of our speakers at Lakeside say she doesn't have a television. She subscribes to Netflix (online video rental). So that means she doesn't know about the IRS scandal (but neither do millions of others who watch broadcast news). She doesn't know that our administration's policies have encouraged parents in Central America to send their minor children on a very dangerous journey and now they are in camps spread around the U.S. at the states...' expense (but TV broadcast news has told viewers they are fleeing violence, instead of looking for a free college education). She doesn't know her president of 5.5 years is still blaming his predecessor for his inability to cobble together a defined foreign policy, a safe exit from Iraq, and a flailing economy (but if she were watching the news this week she would know about celebrities' babies and hair styles, the World Cup, and that the climate is changing and it's all our fault). She also didn't know about a huge story in her field that broke that day--until her audience told her.

Marriage equality? Then why are so many not getting married?

I know a lot of men and women who live together, some in my age group,  who don't believe "marriage equality" works for them. (There are over 1300 laws concerning marriage--benefits, rights and protections.) Why? Usually it's money. She has alimony, or he has his deceased wife's pension. Or one is still married to someone else with whom they own property and they don't want to give lawyers a third of it. I've even known couples where the "new unit" is taking care of the disabled or demented spouse of one of them, but there is no divorce, only death in the future (although that too might be financial--remember Terry Schaivo?). Or they are covered by insurance from the previous spouse.

The second reason is probably children--the adult children. Rather than settle for being a step-mom, she'd rather be his "partner," and avoid the family squabbles. The third reason is they've been "burned" by the laws 2, 3, or 4 times, and won't risk marriage again--sometimes that's financial.

Fourth, is lack of commitment--living together is OK, but marriage is just too far out and restrictive to be considered. One of Obama's more famous avoiders of marriage in his administration is Cass Sunstein, who dumped his live-in Chicago lawyer girl friend of many years who helped his career and who believed his drivel that marriage wasn't for him to marry and procreate with the half-his-age, sexy babe Samantha Power who held out for a ring and a date.

I thought of one more--but have only heard this excuse once. I met him at the coffee shop.  His parents divorced when he was a child and both have remarried numerous times, so he isn't marrying his long time girlfriend, ever.

“the loose arrangements can result in messy legal problems if the couple splits or one partner dies suddenly. Lawyers tell stories of couples who lived together for years in a property owned by one partner. When the owner died, children claimed the property and evicted the survivor.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/26/your-money/welcoming-love-at-an-older-age-but-not-necessarily-marriage.html?_r=0

http://marriage.about.com/cs/cohabitation/a/cohabseniors.htm

Children in poverty

Guess what determines poverty for children? You know what I'm going to say. Marriage--or the lack of it. Look at this chart. Poverty rates for children of married couples is the flat line at the bottom; essentially it hasn't changed for whites in 35 years and has decreased for blacks. Also it is almost the same for married black couples and married white couples--2 lines meet in 2000 and 2008. If you eyeball the chart and figure out where 2009 is, you'll see poverty among children has increased in all groups with Obama in charge of the economy. (Recession ended in 2009) http://childstats.gov/americaschildren/eco1a.asp

 

 

The latest buzz words from the President are "word gap." That was the subject of the June 24 presidential message. In short, parents need to talk to their children because poor and low income children hear half as many words as the children of better educated parents who are earning more. And the federal government is giving a boost to none other than Hillary Clinton in the public-private partnership called Too small to Fail. The partner is the Bill Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation. Reading to children is a super idea--but the parent also needs to enjoy reading (not just know how), spending time with the child, and has to turn off the phone and TV as a start. If you read the lyrics of popular songs, that probably won't improve vocabulary (singing is another suggestion to close the "word gap"). http://toosmall.org/

Dad--you can read the sports section of any newspaper to your child (they don't really care if they know you are interested in it).  It has the highest grade level of words.  Also lots of idioms and pictures and good writing. This is not in the research--it's my advice. One day in the coffee shop I saw a dad reading to his infant and I think it was Dickens. The child never took his eyes off dad's face.

When rivers catch on fire

On Wednesday at Lakeside, John Hartig told us about rivers that catch on fire--the Cuyahoga, Buffalo, Rouge and Chicago. The Chicago River caught on fire so often it was a tourist attraction in the 19th century. The only one I'd heard about was the Cuyahoga since it happened in 1969. But what surprised me was he said there were no photos of this fire--it was not considered unusual at the time, and the photos usually shown to illustrate it are from a fire in the 1950s. Can you imagine that happening today--there'd be so many phone photos and videos of it there would be no problem documenting it. http://www.environmentalcouncil.org/priorities/article.php?x=264

It is wonderful to see the recovery of these 4 rivers, and learn about the people, sometimes just one, who stepped up to save them. However, as lovely as the wetlands, parks, birds and fishing areas are that have replaced the factories, they will never create the jobs and middle class wealth that the much maligned industrial era did.

The damaging effects of sexualizing children

Today's presentation at Lakeside on modern slavery was really gross--the sexualization of children by TV, gaming, popular music, social media. Everything from children's Halloween costumes that represents pimps and prostitutes to little girls acting out Beyoncé's Single ladies (If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it), to things that really should be illegal. But it made me wonder why the federal government would go after the trademark of an athletic team that represents a stereotype of bravery and strength of less than 1% of the population, while allowing those that insult and demean 50% of the population as "freedom of speech." The war on women (and little girls).

Bratz prostitute dolls.  As if being owned for sex and sold to truckers was a fun thing for little girls to imagine.

 

 

Big Daddy pimp costume

 

And one for a little boy so he can pretend.

Dear IRS, sorry. . .

Good fences make good neighbors—Robert Frost

Obama’s unaccompanied minors problem/scandal

Occasionally I still see liberals lashing GW Bush for the failures of Louisiana's Democratic governor and New Orleans' Democratic mayor after the Katrina hurricane. Until the present administration, the federal government wasn't allowed to barge in without invitation. Also, in the recovery, Louisiana had so many arcane and restrictive regulations to protect their local businesses, it was virtually impossible for private contractors to get across state lines with aid quickly. However, apply that to the complete FAIL of the federal government to take care of the unaccompanied children from Central America streaming across the boarder at the President's invitation. The government actually advertised for service providers 6 months before the crisis, and still couldn't keep vulnerable children out of crowded camps and is dumping them on unprepared state and local governments.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jun/23/border-children-fuel-debate-in-gop-race-for-arizon/

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/06/23/DHS-to-Parents-Sending-Unaccompanied-Children-to-USA-There-Are-No-Free-Passes

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/officials-struggle-to-house-children-flocking-across-border/

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/06/20/fact-sheet-unaccompanied-children-central-america  Details the money the U.S. will be sending Central American countries to “solve” this problem.

Smack down of NYT anti-Walmart story

To the claim that Walmart is "a net drain on taxpayers," [David]Tovar answers: "We are the largest taxpayer in America. Can we see your math?" He adds that "we see more associates move off of public assistance as a result of their jobs at Walmart" and links to a corporate video touting one such case. (The point of comparison for Tovar's reference to "more associates" is unclear.)

Regarding the food donation drive, he writes: "To clarify, associates were helping associates during unexpected hard times (fires, divorce, loss of life, etc.). And a noble cause, no doubt. As for the Wisconsin claim, Tovar notes that PolitiFact, the left-leaning "fact checking" outfit, rated it "mostly false." Tovar also disputes some of Egan's factual claims, not quoted above, about Walmart's pay levels.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/wal-marts-scathing-response-york-170243214.html

Immigrants want a conservative America

Why do people cross our borders risking life and limb, leaving families behind, and even participating in smuggling activities? Really, are we so great they just can't wait to get to Toledo or Peoria? No, it's because they want what conservatives offer, not the government heavy-handed control and bias of the liberals which they just escaped. They want a life without police control; without high crime; they want a chance to create a business; they want religious freedom; they want to voice their concerns without going to jail or having their taxes investigated; they want a good education for their children free of propaganda and historical revisionism. Liberals try to destroy what immigrants are trying to achieve and insist immigrants must vote for them. It's conservatism--free markets, smaller government, freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights--that brings them here--someone should tell them. Maybe you?

A beautiful Sunday evening in the park at Lakeside

Nestled in a grove of trees at Lakeside with a great view of the lake and sail boats, there’s a darling gazebo (Steele Memorial Bandstand) wired for sound and lights with a half moon seating of old fashioned, uncomfortable park benches with plenty of room to spread a blanket for a picnic while keeping an eye on the kiddoes playing on the swings. Many weddings are held here, but most importantly, the Sunday evening programs using  local Ohio groups with a more spiritual bent than the usual fare.  Last night was a group of Mennonites (or it began that way), and it may have been my only chance to hear a band play and sing about going  to the Mennonite church on Sunday.  But they were a fun group with a lot of original songs and some cover, and all seemed be be talented musicians—school teachers by trade.  They explained their name, Honeytown, but I don’t recall it now.  They organized in 2007 after performing for a Mennonite Teachers’ Conference, adding a few instruments and developed a nice folk-bluegrass sound, then adding some original rock songs and a cappella.  If you need a fun group to play at your conference, wedding or other event, and you live in the Midwest, contact them. http://www.honeytownmusic.com/

Hoover Opening June 21 was a huge hit

June 21 was a fabulous day at Lakeside where we spend the summer.  The weather couldn’t have been better. There was a great car show on the lawn of the hotel (love those mid-50s models) during the day which we strolled through after dinner.

The evening program at Hoover Auditorium was fiddler Natalie MacMaster with her husband Donnel Leahy with a cute as a bug performance by 4 of their 6 children.  She grew up on Cape Breton Island Nova Scotia had plays traditional Celtic music and American blue grass and provides step dancing (quite a feat since I think the youngest child is about 9 weeks old).  The couple were married in 2002.  Each had careers in the “fiddling” industry—he plays with the Leahys ( 8 of 11 brothers and sisters who perform together)  and she usually is with her own group.  But they were fabulous together.  His leg was in a cast, but he scooted around the stage on a chair. The pianist also danced, and there was a bass guitarist, and guitarist from Scotland who also played accordion.

I’ve rarely seen a performance with so much energy, yet a casual, at home flavor.  And they gave us  90+ minutes and brought down the house with some funny stories and a smashing medley to say thanks and good-bye. 

I don’t know if she really cooks (6 children and a musical career?  I wouldn’t), but she does have a recipe collection on her web site.  Wish I’d had this one last week when I was looking for ways to use up the carrots. Agnes’ Carrot Casserole.

People over 60 can have thyroid problems, too

A Harvard Medical School report says that for people over 60, symptoms of hypothyroidism can be more confusing. Any of the following health issues in a person over 60, alone or in combination, could mean an underlying thyroid problem.

• Unexplained high cholesterol. High cholesterol is sometimes the only evidence of an underactive thyroid in an older person. Because this may be the only symptom, a high cholesterol level warrants a thyroid evaluation.
• Heart failure. Some of the effects of low thyroid hormone levels — for example, reduced blood volume, weaker contractions of the heart muscle, and a slower heart rate — may contribute to heart failure. (Heart failure describes a condition in which the heart doesn’t pump blood effectively to the muscles and organs of the body.) Symptoms of heart failure include breathlessness, swelling in the ankles, weakness, and fatigue.
• Bowel movement changes. An older person with hypothyroidism might have constipation because of decreased movement of stool through the bowels. Less often, an older person will have frequent bouts of diarrhea, which is more typically a symptom of an overactive thyroid. Persistent or severe diarrhea in an older person always warrants a call to the doctor.
• Joint or muscle pain. Vague joint pain is a classic symptom of hypothyroidism. It sometimes is the only symptom of hypothyroidism in an older patient, although many experience an overall muscular aching, particularly in large muscle groups.
• Mental health concerns. As with younger people, depression is common among older people with an underactive thyroid. The difference is that in older people, it can be the only symptom. An older person could also develop other psychiatric symptoms, including delusions or hallucinations.
• Dementia. Debilitating memory loss — often, but not always, accompanied by depression or some kind of psychosis — can also occur as the only symptom of hypothyroidism. If you or a loved one is being evaluated for dementia, be sure that thyroid tests are part of the workup.
• Problems with balance. Abnormalities in the cerebellum at the back of the brain that occur with an underactive thyroid may lead to walking problems in older people.

If you’d like to read the entire report, they would like to sell it to you.

The man who was never there

Remember, he voted "present" when he was in Congress; the first presidential term was all Bush's fault; then the American people just didn't understand his programs that were failing; now it's the Iraqis to blame for his short sightedness.

 http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/06/19/president-obama-took-credit-in-2012-for-withdrawing-all-troops-from-iraq-today-he-said-something-different/

For Obama, who four years earlier had distinguished himself from Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton through his opposition to the war in Iraq, the fact he had withdrawn all U.S. forces from the country was a problem solved and a political chip to be cashed in come November.

It was also a way to once again draw contrasts with Romney, who criticized Obama for failing to secure a so-called status of forces agreement with the Iraqi government. The agreement would have granted immunity from Iraqi prosecution to all U.S. troops in country after 2011. Reaching such a deal -- a political risk for Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki -- would have allowed a contingent of several thousand U.S. troops to remain, largely to help with training and specific counter-terrorism operations.

Remember when liars had some class?

In light of today's transparent liars in the IRS, this almost seems old fashioned and sweet. I came across National Security Advisor Sandy Berger's name on the list of important people in the Clinton administration who believed Saddam Hussein had WMD. Remember him? He's the guy who stole documents from the National Archives several different times in 2003 [and put them in his socks, some said] and then said it was inadvertent. The documents he stole and shredded contained information that the Clinton administration knew in 2000 about the planned terrorist attacks. Then he went to John Kerry's staff in 2004. His new job is taking care of the IRS computers (just kidding).

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16706-2005Mar31.html

http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/03/30/fox-news-special-report-socks-scissors-paper-sandy-berger-caper-questions-probe/

How we got to this mess—symbolism instead of substance

Life tips

Politicians who abandoned their post and walked away

"Given" . . . that the Democrats would later accuse Bush of lying about [Iraq's possession weapons of mass destruction], here is a (partial) list of Democrats who had previously joined in the consensus: Bill Clinton; his Vice President Al Gore; his Secretary of State Madeleine Albright; his Secretary of Defense William Cohen; and his National Security Adviser Sandy Berger. In the Senate, there were Teddy Kennedy, Harry Reid, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Edwards, Jay Rockefeller, Robert Byrd, and Bob Graham–not to mention Nancy Pelosi, among scores of others, in the House, as well as liberal papers like the New York Times and the Washington Post. Each and every one of them saw Saddam Hussein as a threat, and they all advocated taking action against him.”  Norman Podhoretz

New figures from the VA—still scandalous

“Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs Sloan D. Gibson announced that VA has now contacted approximately 70,000 Veterans across the country to get them off of wait lists and into clinics for medical appointments. Gibson also announced the release of the latest updated, facility-level patient access data, which demonstrates that the number of appointments has increased by almost 200,000 from May 15 to June 1.”

http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=2561

College rape statistics

George Will is being hammered for his column on the phony rape statistics that would make the average American college campus worse than any major city controlled by Democrats and drug gangs at midnight, or any third world country known to be unsafe for women. In 2011 there were just 36.8 rapes per 100,000 residents of Detroit, a city with one of the worst violent crime rates in America. That’s a rate of 0.037 percent. Let's say it's under reported 10 times--you still don't get anything close to 20%. One in five is just not realistic, but that figure circulates about every 5 years when feminists are feeling ignored, or someone wants more grant money. 

Will is never one to hold back, but he's really stepped in it now, because Democrats need an issue to cover the cover-ups.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/george-will-college-become-the-victims-of-progressivism/2014/06/06/e90e73b4-eb50-11e3-9f5c-9075d5508f0a_story.html

http://www.sdjewishworld.com/2014/06/12/blumenthal-feinstein-dismayed-george-will-column-sexual-assaults-campus/

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/377492/obama-administrations-deserving-victims-heather-mac-donald/page/0/1

And women think this message by Heather MacDonald is “blame the victim,” when in fact it is common sense.

“The alleged campus-rape epidemic could be stopped overnight if women’s advocates sent a simple message to girls: Don’t get drunk and get into bed with a guy whom you barely know. Keep your clothes on and go home to your own bed at night. And most controversially: Demand that any boy court you long enough to reveal his character and his respect for yours before you even think about having sex with him. The feminist advocates are more interested in preserving the principle of male fault, however, than in protecting females from regretted sex. And so rather than sending an unequivocal message of personal empowerment and responsibility, they put the entire onus of sexual responsibility on males, treating females as the invariably helpless victims of the male libido.”

Gay sex and syphilis

After being on the verge of elimination in 2000 in the United States, syphilis cases have rebounded. Rates of primary and secondary syphilis continued to increase overall during 2005–2013; although rates stabilized during 2009–2010, rates have increased since 2011. Increases have occurred primarily among men, and particularly among MSM [men who have sex with men], who contributed the vast majority of male primary and secondary syphilis cases during 2009–2012.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6318a4.htm?s_cid=mm6318a4_w

Ten, twenty, thirty and forty years of presidential popularity polls

An interesting look back through the polls. 10 years ago, Americans were clearly disenchanted with the Iraq War (supported by both parties originally) and GW Bush's approval was at 49%; 20 years ago, Americans were unhappy that Hillary had tried to take over healthcare, and President Clinton with approval ratings close to Obama's now signed the toughest anti-crime bill which probably accounts in part for a 20 year drop in gun violence; 30 years ago the U.S. was recovering from a recession and unemployment was still a major concern, and Reagan's approval rating was recovering at 55% but had been as low as 35%; 40 years ago Nixon resigned because of a cover up of a scandal (just one!) and his approval rating had been as low as 24%, which was still higher than Harry Truman's in the early 1950s. (Gallup.com June 6, 2014)

Health of the mother exceptions

Abby Johnson, a former employee of Planned Parenthood, says, “If a bill includes a "health of the mother" exception, it should be thrown out immediately. "Health of the mother" exceptions give permission to abort for ANY reason. Examples of "health of the mother" exceptions used in abortion clinics to abort babies past 20 weeks:

I've had headaches during this pregnancy.
I have really bad heartburn.
I vomit sometimes because I'm pregnant. ...
I feel stressed about being a mom.
I've gained a lot of weight during this pregnancy.
I have incontinence issues because I'm pregnant.
I have a lot of back pain.
My ankles keep swelling.”

 

40 years ago, the Democrats made the same mistake

Obama and his advisors and supporters in Congress did the same thing to the Iraq agreement set up by the Bush administration with forces to stay and protect after 2011 (revised by Obama to so small a force that the Iraqis rejected it) that the Democrats did to the Paris Peace Accord in Vietnam (wouldn't provide funds to protect after our troop withdrawal). Same result. http://hnn.us/article/31400

He can't blame Bush for this: "Since 2010, there has been a 58 percent increase in the number of jihadist groups, a doubling of jihadist fighters and a tripling of attacks by al Qaeda affiliates. The most significant threat to the United States, the [RAND Corporation] report concludes, comes from terrorist groups operating in Yemen, Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan." http://www.rand.org/news/press/2014/06/04.html

http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR637.html

Sorting baby clothes—it’s been a long time

One of the amazing things about working at the pregnancy center is discovering the absolute devotion of people working to save the lives of babies. Today I sorted donated baby clothes (to be given to new mothers). Not my usual job since I do clerical work. Size tiny 0-3 months. Itsy bitsy Onesies and booties and cute little towels and bibs. I forgot how tiny a newborn is--and I'm sobered to think that just a month or two earlier, about half the country thinks it's OK to take their lives.

Pray for Sam

A young Christian ministry assistant in Latin America purchased cement which he thought was legal (all cement is controlled by the government). After it arrived at the seminary a woman in the community became very upset because she had been waiting TWO YEARS for cement. She called the National Guard. At first they said there was no problem but as things escalated they changed their minds and decided Sam had purchased contraband and took him to jail. In Latin America you are guilty until proven innocent, so he has to remain there while they conduct their investigation. Your prayers are greatly appreciated.  Even if you don’t know the circumstances, God knows.

Can the government steal a trademark?

So the government can just take away a patent or trademark because Harry Reid says so? "Redskins" wasn't offensive to 90% of native Americans who were surveyed, in fact, some of their high schools use that mascot name. What's next? Indian...a? Indianapolis, Starbucks, Chicago (shikaakwa, wild onion), Illinois (Illini) Chautauqua, Miami, Peoria, squaw (means woman in many tribal languages), Erie (the nation of Cat), and thousands of other loan words to English from native American culture. Native Americans were battling each other long before the Europeans arrived, had probably wiped out the indigenous people here before them, and now their reward for being revered for their bravery and sacrifices is cradle to grave hobbling by our federal government with the "honor" of being sovereign nations living in poverty (unless they own a casino to rot their souls).

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/us-patent-office-cancels-redskins-trademark-registration-says-name-is-disparaging/2014/06/18/e7737bb8-f6ee-11e3-8aa9-dad2ec039789_story.html

Let’s rename the team. How about the Washington Liars, or the Washington Veterans Waiting, or the Washington Lost E-mails, or the Washington Bureaucrats, or the Washington Snoops, or the Washington Cover-ups. No ethnic slurs there, just plain old ethics violations and no one worries about that anymore

                  

Mt. Morris has a bear

It’s not that difficult to imagine the problem

“It’s hard for most Americans to imagine growing up in a democracy [Sierra Leone] where elected officials devise ways to quash citizens’ attempts at free expression and a press’s right to print fair criticism of its leaders." On Campus, Ohio State University, June 12, 2014.

Actually, that's not difficult at all.  Imagine having the most powerful taxing agency in the world, the U.S. IRS, sifting through information for "anti-government" comments because the organizations are checking voter ID registration rolls for dead or duplicate voters, or a reporter being investigated by the NSA because he works for Fox, or publishing confidential voter financial records/contributions on certain issues to get a CEO fired, or publishing gun registrations because the publisher is anti-2nd amendment.  Happened.  Right here.  In the good old free press USA. Where the press functions as an arm of a political party.

Why stop at B?

Michelle Obama on feeding her kids

“Before coming to the White House, I struggled, as a working parent with a traveling, busy husband, to figure out how to feed my kids healthy, and I didn’t get it right,” she explained. “I thought to myself, if a Princeton and Harvard-educated professional woman doesn’t know how to adequately feed her kids, then what are other parents going through who don’t have access to the information I have?”

I have two degrees too (no name dropping for me), but I think I learned about basic nutrition from my mother, from 4-H, and from 7th grade home-ec class. When I was first married, I read the introductory material and nutritional information in my recipe books and women’s magazines.  Many things have changed since I was raising children, like we know margarine probably isn’t good for us, and coffee isn’t going to poison us, the way I learned.  But I always knew fruits, vegetables, some meat, cheese, eggs and bread would cover it. 

I also learned how to make a great pie from watching Mom.  It’s all in the crust.

Priorities

Which is the bigger loan shark—payday loans or government student loans?

I  checked Payday Loans against the government loans to students. Who's the real culprit. Got it--the federal government is the bigger loan shark.

"The $41.3 billion profit [from gov't student loans] for the 2013 fiscal year is down $3.6 billion from the previous year but it's a higher profit level than all but two companies in the world: Exxon Mobil cleared $44.9 billion in 2012, and Apple cleared $41.7 billion." (USAToday Nov. 25, 2013)

"The easy-to-get small ...[payday] loans have drawn a lot of criticism in recent years for burdening low-income borrowers with astronomically high interest rates and fees. In states with no restrictions on the loans, borrowers who quickly replace one payday loan with another generate $2.6 billion in fees every year. ( Washington Post, Sept. 11, 2013)

"Payday loan borrowers spend approximately $7.4 billion annually at 20,000 storefronts and hundreds of websites, plus additional sums at a growing number of banks." (Pew Report, July, 2012)

45 Uses for White Vinegar

1. Freshen up the fridge. Clean the shelves and walls with a solution of half water and half vinegar.
2. Brighten coffee cups and teacups. Gently scrub stains with equal parts vinegar and salt (or baking soda).
3. Eliminate odors. Swab plastic containers with a cloth dampened with vinegar.
4. Kill bathroom germs. Spray full-strength vinegar around the sink and tub. Wipe clean with a damp cloth.
5. Save a garment. To remove light scorch marks on fabrics, rub gently with vinegar. Wipe with a clean cloth. This technique also works on antiperspirant stains.
6. Tidy up a toilet. Pour a cup or more of diluted white distilled vinegar into the bowl. Let sit several hours or overnight. Scrub well with a toilet brush and flush.
7. Lose the carpet stain. Make a paste of 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar and ¼ cup salt or baking soda. Rub into the stain and let dry. Vacuum the residue the next day. (Always test an out-of-sight part of the carpet first.)
8. Renew paint brushes. To remove old paint, place brushes in a pot with vinegar. Soak for an hour, then turn on the stove and bring the vinegar to a simmer. Drain and rinse clean.
9. Wipe off a dirty faucet. To get rid of lime buildup, make a paste of 1 teaspoon vinegar and 2 tablespoons salt. Apply to sink fixtures and rub with a cloth.
10. Stop static cling. Add ½ cup of white distilled vinegar to your wash cycle. The acid reduces static and keeps dryer lint from sticking to your clothes.
11. Make old socks look new. Get the stains out of old socks and sweaty gym clothes by soaking them in a vinegar solution. Add 1 cup of white distilled vinegar to a large pot of water, bring to a boil and drop in the stained clothes. Let them soak overnight, and in the morning stained clothes are fresh and bright.
12. Restore handbags and shoes. Wipe white distilled vinegar on scuffed leather bags and shoes. It will restore their shine and help hide the marks.
13. Banish weeds. Pour white distilled vinegar on the weeds growing in the cracks of your walkway and driveway. Saturate the plant so the vinegar reaches the roots.
14. Liven droopy flowers. Don’t throw out cut flowers once they start to wilt. Instead, add two tablespoons of white vinegar and one teaspoon of sugar to a quart of water. Pour the solution into your vase, and the flowers will perk up.
15. Put an end to itching. Dab a cotton ball soaked in white vinegar on mosquito bites and insect stings. It will stop them from itching and help disinfect the area so they heal faster.
16. Whiten your teeth. Brush your teeth once a week with white distilled vinegar. Dip your toothbrush into the vinegar and brush thoroughly. It will help prevent bad breath, too.
17. Make nail polish last longer. Before you apply your favorite polish, wipe your nails with a cotton ball soaked in white distilled vinegar. The clean surface will help your manicure last.
18. Keep car windows frost-free. Prevent windows from frosting over in a storm by coating them with a solution of three parts white distilled vinegar to one part water. The acidity hinders ice, so you won’t have to wake up early to scrape off your car.
19. Let your dog shine. Spray your dog with one cup white distilled vinegar mixed with one quart water. The solution is a cheap alternative to expensive pet-care products, plus the vinegar will help repel pests like fleas and ticks.
20. Battle litter-box odor. Cat litter can leave behind an unwelcome smell. Eliminate it by pouring a half-inch of white distilled vinegar into the empty litter box. Let stand for 20 minutes, then rinse with cold water.
21. Kill bacteria in meat. Marinating in vinegar knocks out bacteria and tenderizes the meat. Create a marinade by adding ¼ cup balsamic vinegar for every 2 pounds of meat to your own blend of herbs and spices. Let the meat sit anywhere from 20 minutes to 24 hours, depending on how strong you want the flavor, then cook it in the morning without rinsing.
22. Prevent cracked eggs. Prevent eggs from cracking as they hard-boil by adding two tablespoons of white vinegar to the water. The eggs will stay intact, and the shells will peel off more easily when you’re ready to eat them.
23. Steam away a microwave mess. Fill a small bowl with equal parts hot water and vinegar, and place it in the microwave on high for 5 minutes. As the steam fills the microwave, it loosens the mess, making clean up a breeze.
24. Repair DVDs. If you have a worn DVD that skips or freezes, wipe it down with white distilled vinegar applied to a soft cloth. Make sure the DVD is completely dry before reinserting it into the player.
25. Get those last drops. If you can’t get that final bit of mayonnaise or salad dressing out of the jar, dribble in a few drops of vinegar. Put the cap on tightly and shake. The remaining condiments will slide out.
26. Rinse fruits and vegetables. Add 2 tablespoons white distilled vinegar to one pint water. Use the mixture to wash fresh fruits and vegetables, then rinse thoroughly. The solution kills more pesticide residue than does pure water.
27. Brighter Easter eggs. Before your kids dye Easter eggs, mix 1 teaspoon of vinegar with ½ cup of hot water, then add food coloring. The vinegar keeps the dye bright and prevents the color from streaking.
28. Loosen a rusted screw. Pour vinegar onto the screw, and it will easily unstick.
29. Remove gum. To remove gum from fabric or hair, heat a small bowl of vinegar in the microwave. Pour the warm vinegar over the gum, saturating the area. The gum will dissolve.
30. Keep cheese from molding. Wrap cheese in a vinegar-soaked cloth, then place in an airtight container and refrigerate.
31. Renew a loofah. Soak your loofah in equal parts vinegar and water for 24 hours to dissolve soap residue, then rinse in cold water.
32. Remove wax. If you get melted candle wax on your wood furniture or floors, gently wipe it away with a cloth soaked in a solution of equal parts white vinegar and water.
33. Take a relaxing bath. Add ½ cup of vinegar to warm bath water for a cheap spa session at home. The vinegar removes dead skin, leaving you feeling soft and smooth.
34. Brighten your hair. Remove hair product buildup by rinsing a tablespoon of vinegar through your hair once a month.
35. Freshen fabrics. Fill a spray bottle with white vinegar and spritz your home to neutralize odors in fabrics, carpets, shoes or any sprayable surface.
36. Erase crayon. If your kids get crayon marks on the walls or floor, dip a toothbrush in white vinegar and gently scrub. The vinegar breaks down the wax, making for an inexpensive, nontoxic way to clean up after children.
37. Sticky stickers. Don’t scratch at the residue left by stickers or price tags. Instead, apply vinegar to the gunk, let it sit for a few minutes, then wipe the glue away.
38. Clean the dishwasher and coffee pot. Reduce soap buildup and food residue by pouring a cup of vinegar into your empty dishwasher or coffee pot once a month and letting it run a full cycle.
39. Sanitize pet accidents. You can remove the stain―and smell―of your pet’s accident by mixing ¼ cup vinegar with a quart of water and blotting the mixture onto the mess with a washcloth. Continue dabbing until the spot is gone.
40. Prep for summer grilling. To remove charcoal buildup from your grill, spray white distilled vinegar on balled up aluminum foil and scrub the grate thoroughly.
41. Restore showerhead pressure. If your showerhead gets clogged with mineral deposits, soak it for 15 minutes in a mixture of ½ cup vinegar and 1 quart water.
42. Clean your scissors. When your scissor blades get sticky, wipe them down with a cloth dipped in full-strength white vinegar. Unlike soap and water, vinegar won’t ruin the blades or rust the metal.
43. Unclog drains. For a natural, nontoxic way to clean clogged pipes, pour one cup of baking soda, followed by one cup of white vinegar, down the drain. Let the products bubble and foam, then flush the pipes with a pot of boiling water.
44. Eliminate dandruff. If your scalp is feeling dry or flaky, vinegar can be a simple at-home remedy. Once a week, pour one cup of apple cider vinegar over your scalp, and let it sit for 15 minutes. Rinse thoroughly with cool water.
45. Soften your feet. Summer sandals leaving you with cracked heals and calluses? Soak your feet for 20 minutes a day in one part vinegar to two parts warm water. The vinegar removes dead skin, leaving your feet soft and smooth.

Thousands may lose their insurance subsidies—big surprise come April

This might change some ACA success stories, but since it's rolled off the front page, who will care? Or maybe it could cover up for the Iraq beheadings and massacres since Obama declared it safe and sovereign. "Of the eight million people who signed up for private health plans through insurance exchanges under the new health care law, two million reported personal information that differed from data in government records, according to federal officials and Serco, the company hired to resolve such inconsistencies.

The government is asking consumers for additional documents to verify their income, citizenship, immigration status and Social Security numbers, as well as any health coverage that they may have from employers. People who do not provide the information risk losing their subsidized coverage and may have to repay subsidies next April." New York Times, June 15, 2014

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/16/us/thousands-to-be-questioned-on-eligibility-for-health-insurance-subsidies.html?_r=1

Pray for the unborn whose only hope is their mothers’ decision about life

There are 22 women on my pregnancy prayer list this week. Only one is leaning toward adoption as a solution for an unwanted pregnancy. All the rest are either planning an abortion, asking about it, or considering it; two are married, two single with other children, so they know what they are doing--taking the life of their children’s sibling. In one case, the father is anxious for her not to ab...ort; in another, the father is pressuring her to abort. There are no tragic stories of rape or incest or disability--just bad choices. There is all manner of financial support for women in this situation, much more so than 20 or 30 years ago--from free, to sliding scale to government. What there isn’t is society’s support . . . for children to be allowed to live, to be valued and treated fairly.

Sharyl Attkisson’s questions on Lois Lerner’s missing e-mails

• Please provide a timeline of the crash and documentation covering when it was first discovered and by whom; when, how and by whom it was learned that materials were lost; the official documentation reporting the crash and federal data loss; documentation reflecting all attempts to recover the materials; and the remediation records documenting the fix. This material should include the names of all officials and technicians involved, as well as all internal communications about the matter.
• Please provide all documents and emails that refer to the crash from the time that it happened through the IRS’ disclosure to Congress Friday that it had occurred.
• Please provide the documents that show the computer crash and lost data were appropriately reported to the required entities including any contractor servicing the IRS. If the incident was not reported, please explain why.
• Please provide a list summarizing what other data was irretrievably lost in the computer crash. If the loss involved any personal data, was the loss disclosed to those impacted? If not, why?
• Please provide documentation reflecting any security analyses done to assess the impact of the crash and lost materials. If such analyses were not performed, why not?
• Please provide documentation showing the steps taken to recover the material, and the names of all technicians who attempted the recovery.
• Please explain why redundancies required for federal systems were either not used or were not effective in restoring the lost materials, and provide documentation showing how this shortfall has been remediated.
• Please provide any documents reflecting an investigation into how the crash resulted in the irretrievable loss of federal data and what factors were found to be responsible for the existence of this situation.
• I would also ask for those who discovered and reported the crash to testify under oath, as well as any officials who reported the materials as having been irretrievably lost.

                  

http://sharylattkisson.com/lois-lerners-lost-emails-questions-for-the-irs/

While Iraq goes up in flames, Obama plugs climate control

"President Obama hijacked the commencement address of students at the University of California at Irvine this weekend to mock people who disagree with him on climate change. The President insulted all of the graduates who disagree with him on global warming on a day that was supposed to be in their honor.

No President should mock his country's citizenry, but if he's going to do it anyway, he should have delivered a better speech than this fatuous, misleading poppycock." National Center for Public Policy Research

http://www.conservativeblog.org/amyridenour/2014/6/16/3-reasons-obamas-university-of-california-at-irvine-commence.html

The President said: "So the question is not whether we need to act. The overwhelming judgment of science, accumulated and measured and reviewed over decades, has put that question to rest."

Response: Proper science doesn't rest on "judgments," even multiple judgments that someone somehow "measures." It finds proof.

The President said: "The 18 warmest years on record have all happened since you graduates were born."

Response: Our temperature records are very short, and a 16-year period of warming ended about the time today's high school graduates were born. The President could just as accurately said there hasn't been any warming since Bill Clinton was President and that one of his own agencies released data this month showing the United States has cooled slightly over the last decade, but that didn't fit his political agenda

The President said: "Out West, firefighters brave longer, harsher wildfire seasons; states have to budget for that. Mountain towns worry about what smaller snowpacks mean for tourism. Farmers and families at the bottom worry about what it will mean for their water. In cities like Norfolk and Miami, streets now flood frequently at high tide. Shrinking icecaps have National Geographic making the biggest change in its atlas since the Soviet Union broke apart."

Response: If this is the best evidence the President has for the catastrophic global warming theory, it's a wonder he can say he believes in it with a straight face. Wildfires are affected by many circumstances, and did the President not notice that it snowed a lot last winter? Sea levels have been rising for thousands of years, and the fall of the Soviet Union was only 23 years ago, not even a blink in climate terms. And, by the way, global sea ice is approaching record high levels. Give it up, Mr. President, if this is all you've got.

I don’t know if he said this, but I’ve thought it

Monday Memories--strap on roller skates

Yes, I went around the block a few times on skates similar to these. Cracks in the sidewalks, bumps, skinned knees, and most painful, sometimes the toe lock would loosen, and slip off your shoe, leaving the leather thong still fastened at the ankle. The key to the lock was usually kept around the neck of the skater.

When high taxes create criminals

No one hates cigarettes more than I do--they are destroyers of health and burners of money needed for other goods and services. However, this is just stupid. 56.9% of the cigarettes consumed in New York are now smuggled into the state, according to a report from the Tax Foundation. Why? The cigarette tax in New York is $4.35 a pack, the highest in the nation. And New York City imposes an additional $1.50 tax, bringing the total taxes to $5.85 a pack — nearly 35 times higher... than in the lowest-taxed state. It's the classic "sin" tax. The people hurt the most are poor and they are probably the targets for the smuggling. This is an example of how any ridiculously high tax is counter productive. In 1960 the top tax rate was 91%, and total tax receipts as % of GDP was 7.9%. In 2013 the top tax rate was 39.6% and total tax receipts as % of GDP was 7.6%.

http://www.heritage.org/federalbudget/income-tax-receipts

http://taxfoundation.org/article/cigarette-taxes-and-cigarette-smuggling-state

Happy Father’s Day

Everyone is posting photos of “dad,” so here’s mine.  I don’t have a lot to choose from.  We didn’t have digital cameras in those days, or smart phones, and we didn’t record every get-together and holiday.  But this one was on the occasion of three new grandbabies born between September 10 and October 5 in 1961.  Dad wasn’t all that experienced holding babies, as you can see from the shape of his hands.  He was the oldest of nine, so of course my mother thought he must love kids!  He was 48.

Ham sandwiches for a crowd

BEST HAM SANDWISHES YOU'LL EVER HAVE!!!
2 -12 packages of sweet Hawaiian rolls (the small dinner roll looking ones)
1 1/2 lbs of Virginia ham (NOT honey ham)...
12 slices Swiss cheese
1 stick of real butter
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Onion Powder
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
Directions:
You will need two 9 x 13 pans. Place the bottoms of 12 rolls in each pan. Place ham (about 2 shaved slices or so) on the rolls. Cut the cheese slices into 4 parts and place 2 small pieces on each sandwich. Put the dinner roll tops on. In a sauce pan, mix butter, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, garlic powder and poppy seeds. Wait until all butter is melted and then brush the melted mixture over the ham sandwiches. Cover with foil and let sit in fridge for 1 hour or over night. (If you want to bake them right away, you can also.) Preheat oven to 375 and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve. They are great hot and even at room temperature. Enjoy!

Sunnis and Shi’ites can’t get along with each other; why should they get along with us?

"The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has just seized the Iraqi cities of Mosul and Tikrit, and is close to taking control of the nation’s largest oil refinery — indicating that the jihad between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims is raging hotter now than it has in centuries, and isn’t going to die down anytime soon. . .the idea that the Sunni-Shi’ite divide, which is 1,400 years old and goes all the way back to the murky origins of Islam, is something that can without undue difficulty be “overcome” is a sterling manifestation of the general superficiality of Washington’s analysis of the Middle East, during both the Bush and the Obama administrations. - http://pamelageller.com/2014/06/sunni-vs-shia-explained.html/

Bush thought he could bring democracy to these warring groups and stop the killing; Obama thought he could pull out and the killing and chaos would not return. But looking at that big black blob (Shia) that is Iran, I suspect that’s where the problem is.

Obama’s on top of the Iraq situation—on the golf course

Is it the technology or the people using it?

We have the snooping technology to ruin the career of a TV chef for something she said 20 years ago, and to get a CEO fired for how he voted in 2008 on a pro-marriage issue, but there's no way for branches of the military to be alerted that Bowe Bergdahl had emotional problems and was removed from the Coast Guard before he enlisted in the Army?

And how about those missing files in the IRS? It's amazing that the federal government has no back up, isn't it (as required by law)? Lois Lerner's e-mails for that important period of time the IRS was harassing conservatives have mysteriously just disappeared. Has the IRS ever lost information on what YOU owe the government?

http://www.itworld.com/security/55954/law-requires-email-archiving

Obama’s good war

For those too young to remember, in 2008 President Obama campaigned against the Iraq War.  By the time of the election it was virtually over, and all he could do was promise to bring the troops home.  He had always said Afghanistan was the “good war,” however, hostilities there were increasing after being quiet and secure for years. Women had uncovered and were going to school, working, being elected, etc.  So he dawdled and waited during the summer of 2009, and by the time he OK’d a surge, it was probably too late.

  During his first term more military were lost than during Bush’s two terms.  575 US troops died in Afghanistan during the Bush presidency. By August 18, 2010, following two troop surges initiated by President Obama, that number had doubled.

When looking at a map today of how the jihadists have overrun Iraq, it’s pretty clear that everything was in place.  Perhaps the return of the five was just the impetus needed since they knew Obama never wanted to be there and probably wouldn’t fight to help the Iraqis that Bush had liberated from Saddam.

In 2009 the main stream media still couldn’t lavish enough praise on their beloved president and admired him for holding back for months.

“When the history of the Obama presidency is written, that day with the chart may prove to be a turning point, the moment a young commander in chief set in motion a high-stakes gamble to turn around a losing war. By moving the bell curve to the left, Mr. Obama decided to send 30,000 troops mostly in the next six months and then begin pulling them out a year after that, betting that a quick jolt of extra forces could knock the enemy back on its heels enough for the Afghans to take over the fight.

The three-month review that led to the escalate-then-exit strategy is a case study in decision making in the Obama White House — intense, methodical, rigorous, earnest and at times deeply frustrating for nearly all involved. It was a virtual seminar in Afghanistan and Pakistan, led by a president described by one participant as something “between a college professor and a gentle cross-examiner.” “ New York Times, Dec. 5, 2009

                 

http://allenbwest.com/2014/02/us-military-deaths-afghanistan-skyrocket-obama/

"Today the president acknowledged that the Islamic State's advance "poses a danger to Iraq and its people, and given the nature of these terrorists, it could pose a threat eventually to American interests as well." In 2007 he promised to withdraw regardless of the danger to Iraq and its people. He kept that promise." Wall St. Journal, June 13, 2014

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303373004579622360300173126.html

Today's household tips

1. When blogging, put the visiting dog in your lap to stop the barking.

2. Don't lick a slotted spoon.

3. Wear an apron when preparing beets.

4. Repairmen never have the parts with them and require a trip to the hardware store which adds to the time. But that's not a good reason to keep 50 bazillion pieces parts in jars and cans in the basement storage area.

5. Masking liquid (for painting white in watercolor) does not come out of carpets, but there is some hope for the furniture once it dries (just rub it off).

6. Have an extra key or two made and keep them at the neighbors.

7. Learn your daughter's unlisted phone number.

8. Owning a home is not an investment, it's a place to bury money you'll probably never see again.

9. If your cat develops a sneeze, your nice furniture and clothing are toast. Don't waste your money on cures, or changing cat food. Keep Kleenex handy.

10. If you like to make lists, don't run out before #10 or it won't look tidy.

The sin of envy

We fight one another, and envy arms us against one another. ... If everyone strives to unsettle the Body of Christ, where shall we end up? We are engaged in making Christ's Body a corpse. ... We declare ourselves members of one and the same organism, yet we devour one another like beasts 

St. John Chrysostom, Hom. in 2 Cor. 27,3-4:PG 61,588

I was looking through contemporary sermons (mostly audio which is difficult) on Sermon Cloud, http://www.sermoncloud.com/, but since the early church struggled with it from the beginning, I think this was one of the best.  “arms us against one another. . .making Christ’s body a corpse.”

St. John Chrysostom was a "golden-voiced" orator and one of the 8 great Doctors of the Church (Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, Gregory the Great, Athanasius, John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, and Gregory of Nazianzus).

49% drop in gun homicide—but who knew?

There's no consensus on why gun homicide has decreased almost 50% in the last 20 years--aging population, more criminals in jail and off the streets, some kooks think it is all the aborted children who might have grown up to be criminals. But one thing is for sure, the media have been very quiet about the drop as gun ownership and population increase, and you'll never hear about it from the anti-second amendment folks like our president. http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/05/07/gun-homicide-rate-down-49-since-1993-peak-public-unaware/

• In 2010, there were 3.6 gun homicides per 100,000 people, compared with 7.0 in 1993, according to CDC data.
• In 2010, CDC data counted 11,078 gun homicide deaths, compared with 18,253 in 1993.⁵
• Men and boys make up the vast majority (84% in 2010) of gun homicide victims. The firearm homicide rate also is more than five times as high for males of all ages (6.2 deaths per 100,000 people) as it is for females (1.1 deaths per 100,000 people).
• By age group, 69% of gun homicide victims in 2010 were ages 18 to 40, an age range that was 31% of the population that year. Gun homicide rates also are highest for adults ages 18 to 24 and 25 to 40.
• A disproportionate share of gun homicide victims are black (55% in 2010, compared with the 13% black share of the population). Whites were 25% of victims but 65% of the population in 2010. Hispanics were 17% of victims and 16% of the population in 2010.
• The firearm suicide rate (6.3 per 100,000 people) is higher than the firearm homicide rate and has come down less sharply. The number of gun suicide deaths (19,392 in 2010) outnumbered gun homicides, as has been true since at least 1981.

Why is all this happening?

“The Crimea is gone. Ukraine is in danger of Russian domination. Syria and Libya are in turmoil. Egypt is a basket case. We are "negotiating" with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Iraq is being overrun. The EU is in decline even as the the power of China and Russia is growing. Traditional allies of American do not trust us any longer - and for good reason - America can no longer project its power, nor is it willing to do so. America's southern border is being assaulted by illegal immigrants that we can't take care of because we are broke - a debtor nation.

Why?

The world is in chaos today for one reason. It is due to the policies enacted by the progressive Democrat Party and their leader . . .”

Michael Smith at his Facebook page.

The VA scandal hasn’t gone away

“The VA scandal is like cancer: It doesn’t go away, it just gets worse when we aren’t looking… The Obama Administration’s self-made crises with the Bowe Bergdahl prisoner swap and the new wave of underage illegal immigration knocked the VA scandal out of the news. But it was like hitting your head with a hammer to take your mind off your broken leg. And Heaven help you if you need VA treatment for either of those things. While the media were distracted, a new VA audit revealed that delayed care for veterans is even worse than we thought. Over 57,000 veterans have been waiting at least 90 days for their first visit with a VA doctor. Over the past decade, another 64,000 vets enrolled, requested a doctor’s appointment, and never even got one. And out of 731 VA hospitals reviewed, 73 percent showed evidence of fraud to cover up the lack of care. The White House is rushing to provide care for all the illegal border crossers. How about an equal sense of urgency to provide care for our veterans?” Mike Huckabee

Safer sex?

I volunteer at a free clinic, and when my tasks are finished, I read the literature. Here's a brochure on STIs and condoms that I thought was interesting. Condoms don't reduce STIs at all for oral sex, and increase the risk for HIV; condoms during anal sex may decrease your risk for rectal chlamydia and cut your chance of getting HIV by up to half; condoms used every time can cut your chance of HPV by up to 70% (HPV causes cervical cancer and causes about the same number of deaths as HIV/AIDS every year); use of condoms every time can cut your chance of genital herpes by about 30%, but once you're infected you have it for life; using condoms every time can cut your chance of getting chlamydia or gonorrhea by about half; using condoms every time can cut your chance of getting HIV by about 85%--it kills about half a million a year. Only about 2/3 of sexually active teens use condoms, and as males age, they use them even less. All these odds assume correct usage and no breakage.

Now my question is, how many people would fly or drive with these odds of arriving safely?

And I have the references to the research if you need it.

The Medical Institute