Friday, September 04, 2009
Seventy sunrises
We've been here at Lake Erie for 10 of the last 11 weeks, and I've walked the lakefront every morning at sunrise. I think I needed a jacket only 3 times--the rest of the time was just a long sleeve shirt and sweat pants. I didn't always have my camera, but when I didn't I always regretted it--each sunrise is different, and the September is about an hour later than the late June. First I was watching the 6 o'clock ferry from Marblehead to Kelley's, then the 7 o'clock. I wasn't alone; I saw the gate keepers arrive, dog walkers, freighters, sail boats, fishermen, kayak, coffee drinkers, Bible readers, lovers, coast guard maneuvers, families of mallards swimming and purple martins breakfasting, feral cats and an occasional skunk and bat. Only once did I get caught in a shower, and it was brief. The big storms seemed to be in the evening.
I'd rather be sailing
This is from the musical, “The New Brain,” written by William Finn, and the musical is autobiographical. It is sung here by Kevin Smith Kirkwood, but there are other versions on the internet. A few years ago my apple pie won a prize--sailing lessons, which I didn't use, but my husband did. Now our Lakeside time revolves around sailing, the wind, the sun, is the flag up, and biking down to the lake every 15 minutes to check. He absolutely loves it.
Synopsis from Wikipedia: "Gordon Schwinn, a talented young songwriter, works at his piano to meet a deadline. Gordon is irritated because he must write a song about Spring for a children's television entertainer who dresses as a frog. He takes a break from his writing and meets his agent Rhoda at a restaurant for pasta. During lunch, Gordon clutches his head and falls face first into his meal. Rhoda calls an ambulance, and Gordon is taken to the hospital. He learns that he has an arteriovenous malformation. Gordon needs an operation, and if he doesn't have it, he could die or never regain the use of his faculties.
While in the hospital, Gordon contemplates his situation. His greatest fear is dying with his greatest songs still inside of him; and so from his hospital bed, and while in a coma, and all throughout his ordeal, he begins writing the songs. He also has several hallucinations that involve various people whom he has encountered. In particular, a homeless lady that he met on his way to get pasta with Rhoda continually pops up.
Gordon eventually has the surgery and recovers completely. The creative block he was experiencing before his ordeal lifts, and he gains new insights. His near death experience encourages him to re-evaluate and better appreciate the people and relationships in his life."
Synopsis from Wikipedia: "Gordon Schwinn, a talented young songwriter, works at his piano to meet a deadline. Gordon is irritated because he must write a song about Spring for a children's television entertainer who dresses as a frog. He takes a break from his writing and meets his agent Rhoda at a restaurant for pasta. During lunch, Gordon clutches his head and falls face first into his meal. Rhoda calls an ambulance, and Gordon is taken to the hospital. He learns that he has an arteriovenous malformation. Gordon needs an operation, and if he doesn't have it, he could die or never regain the use of his faculties.
While in the hospital, Gordon contemplates his situation. His greatest fear is dying with his greatest songs still inside of him; and so from his hospital bed, and while in a coma, and all throughout his ordeal, he begins writing the songs. He also has several hallucinations that involve various people whom he has encountered. In particular, a homeless lady that he met on his way to get pasta with Rhoda continually pops up.
Gordon eventually has the surgery and recovers completely. The creative block he was experiencing before his ordeal lifts, and he gains new insights. His near death experience encourages him to re-evaluate and better appreciate the people and relationships in his life."
A Cowboy Named Bud
You don't have to be a Conservative to enjoy this joke; it's beyond politics. And it's going around. Charlie Rowland, a talented watercolorist, sent me this version. No source was noted, and I haven't looked.
"A cowboy named Bud was overseeing his herd in a remote mountainous pasture in California when suddenly a brand-new BMW advanced toward him out of a cloud of dust.
The driver, a young man in a Brioni suit, Gucci shoes, RayBan sunglasses and YSL tie, leaned out the window and asked the cowboy, "If I tell you exactly how many cows and calves you have in your herd, Will you give me a calf?"
Bud looks at the man, obviously a yuppie, then looks at his peacefully grazing herd and calmly answers, "Sure, Why not?"
The yuppie parks his car, whips out his Dell notebook computer, connects it to his Cingular RAZR V3 cell phone, and surfs to a NASA page on the Internet, where he calls up a GPS satellite to get an exact fix on his location which he then feeds to another NASA satellite that scans the area in an ultra-high-resolution photo.
The young man then opens the digital photo in Adobe Photoshop and exports it to an image processing facility in Hamburg, Germany. Within seconds, he receives an email on his Palm Pilot that the image has been processed and the data stored. He then accesses an MS-SQL database through an ODBC connected Excel spreadsheet with email on his Blackberry and, after a few minutes, receives a response.
Finally, he prints out a full-color, 150-page report on his hi- tech, miniaturized HP LaserJet printer, turns to the cowboy and says, "You have exactly 1,586 cows and calves."
"That's right. Well, I guess you can take one of my calves," says Bud.
He watches the young man select one of the animals and looks on with amusement as the young man stuffs it into the car trunk and says "I like this one; it's a little different and seems smarter than the others".
Then the Bud says to the young man, "Hey, if I can tell you exactly what your business is, will you give me back my calf?"
The young man thinks about it for a second and then says, "Okay, why not?"
"You're a Congressman for the U.S. Government", says Bud.
"Wow! That's correct," says the yuppie, "but how did you guess that?"
"No guessing required," answered the cowboy. "You showed up here even though nobody called you; you want to get paid for an answer I already knew, to a question I never asked. You used millions of dollars worth of equipment trying to show me how much smarter than me you are; and you don't know a thing about how working people make a living - or about cows, for that matter.
This is a herd of sheep. ..
Now give me back my dog." "
"A cowboy named Bud was overseeing his herd in a remote mountainous pasture in California when suddenly a brand-new BMW advanced toward him out of a cloud of dust.
The driver, a young man in a Brioni suit, Gucci shoes, RayBan sunglasses and YSL tie, leaned out the window and asked the cowboy, "If I tell you exactly how many cows and calves you have in your herd, Will you give me a calf?"
Bud looks at the man, obviously a yuppie, then looks at his peacefully grazing herd and calmly answers, "Sure, Why not?"
The yuppie parks his car, whips out his Dell notebook computer, connects it to his Cingular RAZR V3 cell phone, and surfs to a NASA page on the Internet, where he calls up a GPS satellite to get an exact fix on his location which he then feeds to another NASA satellite that scans the area in an ultra-high-resolution photo.
The young man then opens the digital photo in Adobe Photoshop and exports it to an image processing facility in Hamburg, Germany. Within seconds, he receives an email on his Palm Pilot that the image has been processed and the data stored. He then accesses an MS-SQL database through an ODBC connected Excel spreadsheet with email on his Blackberry and, after a few minutes, receives a response.
Finally, he prints out a full-color, 150-page report on his hi- tech, miniaturized HP LaserJet printer, turns to the cowboy and says, "You have exactly 1,586 cows and calves."
"That's right. Well, I guess you can take one of my calves," says Bud.
He watches the young man select one of the animals and looks on with amusement as the young man stuffs it into the car trunk and says "I like this one; it's a little different and seems smarter than the others".
Then the Bud says to the young man, "Hey, if I can tell you exactly what your business is, will you give me back my calf?"
The young man thinks about it for a second and then says, "Okay, why not?"
"You're a Congressman for the U.S. Government", says Bud.
"Wow! That's correct," says the yuppie, "but how did you guess that?"
"No guessing required," answered the cowboy. "You showed up here even though nobody called you; you want to get paid for an answer I already knew, to a question I never asked. You used millions of dollars worth of equipment trying to show me how much smarter than me you are; and you don't know a thing about how working people make a living - or about cows, for that matter.
This is a herd of sheep. ..
Now give me back my dog." "
HR 3200 and Marriage and Family
It seems page 838 of HR 3200 is a popular Google search--where young children and families expecting children are discussed. The alarm is spreading through conservative sites. Yes, it stinks to the high heaven of government heavy nosed snooping. However, this isn’t new to the Obama people. Follow the money back through the previous 3 administrations. It started to smell 2 decades ago, maybe before.
The federal government has been aware since the Clinton administration research publicized it that unmarried families are far more likely to be dysfunctional and living in poverty, so that does make marriage a legitimate concern. A woman who has not finished her schooling, who has her children before age 21, and doesn’t marry the father of her children, has a very good chance of becoming the responsibility of the taxpayer (and yes, that includes the Palin family), and Uncle Sam is not a generous, kind step-father. Yes, there are exceptions--usually when the grandparents take over as in our current president's case. The Bush administration carelessly threw money into the marriage consulting and advice business with very little oversite--whether it went to ACORN or Lutherans or Agnostics, made little difference, millions of tax dollars went to workshops, research and publications that probably amounted to little except paying the salaries of quasi-government workers in academe, churches, non-profits and state children‘s agencies.
That said, co-habitation before marriage (a k a "living together," "shacking-up") is not just a one way street to poverty, it is dangerous for women and children, and doesn’t result in strong marriages, according to the Rutgers’ National Marriage Project (I haven't checked their funding, but I'm guessing it came from us taxpayers, so you might as well take a look.)
The federal government has been aware since the Clinton administration research publicized it that unmarried families are far more likely to be dysfunctional and living in poverty, so that does make marriage a legitimate concern. A woman who has not finished her schooling, who has her children before age 21, and doesn’t marry the father of her children, has a very good chance of becoming the responsibility of the taxpayer (and yes, that includes the Palin family), and Uncle Sam is not a generous, kind step-father. Yes, there are exceptions--usually when the grandparents take over as in our current president's case. The Bush administration carelessly threw money into the marriage consulting and advice business with very little oversite--whether it went to ACORN or Lutherans or Agnostics, made little difference, millions of tax dollars went to workshops, research and publications that probably amounted to little except paying the salaries of quasi-government workers in academe, churches, non-profits and state children‘s agencies.
That said, co-habitation before marriage (a k a "living together," "shacking-up") is not just a one way street to poverty, it is dangerous for women and children, and doesn’t result in strong marriages, according to the Rutgers’ National Marriage Project (I haven't checked their funding, but I'm guessing it came from us taxpayers, so you might as well take a look.)
- "It is important to note that the great majority of children in unmarried-couple households were born not in the present union but in a previous union of one of the adult partners, usually the mother. This means that they are living with an unmarried “stepfather” or mother’s boyfriend, with whom the economic and social relationships are often tenuous. For example, unlike children in stepfamilies, these children have few legal claims to child support or other sources of family income should the couple separate.
Child abuse has become a major national problem and has increased dramatically in recent years, by more than 10% a year according to one estimate. In the opinion of most researchers, this increase is related strongly to changing family forms. Surprisingly, the available American data do not enable us to distinguish the abuse that takes place in married-couple households from that in cohabiting couple households. We do have abuse-prevalence studies that look at stepparent families (both married and unmarried) and mother’s boyfriends (both cohabiting and dating). Both show far higher levels of child abuse than is found in intact families.
In general, the evidence suggests that the most unsafe of all family environments for children is that in which the mother is living with someone other than the child’s biological father. This is the environment for the majority of children in cohabiting couple households."
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Gambling in Ohio--Issue 3, guest blog
What can I say? Nothing good, and that's a fact. I hope the voters say no in November. Gambling is a tax on the poor; it makes former Methodist pastors who become governors greedy hypocrites; it brings with it a number of social and economic problems which kicks the cost problem down the road; and oddly enough, a major financial drain on casinos is the money spent on replacing the cushions on stools in front of slot machines--people won’t get up from machines even to go to the bathroom, so yes, it is indeed addictive. Former Governor George Voinovich says it's better to raise taxes than rely on gambling to pay the bills. Buckeye RINO has this to say on the topic.
- "In theory, we can all govern ourselves, with no need for government structures beyond self. In reality, governing ourselves creates dilemmas for no one is an island unto themselves, and the free exercise of one's liberty will often interfere with the free exercise of another person's liberty, thus we create government structures beyond self.
In theory, the consequences of actions accrue to the individual that decided upon those actions. Reality is much messier. The decisions of individuals reap consequences that are far-reaching in scope.
As applied to gambling: In theory, there is no need for intervention. Individuals can govern themselves. If they ruin themselves by gambling, they have only themselves to blame. In reality, gambling is not a solitary pursuit. If one engages in gambling, others must be involved. Therefore, there is need for governing principles beyond self. Furthermore, when ruin results from gambling, the ruin is not confined to the persons who participated in gambling. The costs are socialized whether one wishes them to be, or not. Intervention is sought for these reasons.
Gambling is not an exchange in the sense of a stock trade. What instruments of value are being exchanged in gambling? The gambler is defrauded, and his wealth plundered. The gambler receives nothing of value, so there is no exchange. This is piracy.
There is a set admission price for entering Cedar Point. Consumers know in advance what they will be paying for the entertainment they receive. The transactions of an amusement park are open and transparent. Likewise for a video game arcade, there is advance knowledge of what one pays and what entertainment one will receive in exchange. Open and transparent. Gamblers have no idea how much "entertainment" they will receive for a set price. Conceivably one gambler can be entertained all day for $20, while another will lose that same $20 within seconds. Casinos are thieves that try to seize all that they can. Casinos are not open, not transparent, which is why they are the preferred venue for money laundering.
Somali pirates create jobs. Nigerian scammers create jobs. Of course casinos create jobs, but the jobs that are created are not the product of newly created wealth. They are parasitic jobs that feed off the plundered wealth that others created. Similarly, taxes, which are confiscated wealth that others created, also fund jobs. But just as we cannot tax our society into prosperity, we cannot gamble our society into prosperity. Producers are the wealth creators, and casinos aren't producers.
I believe that laws against scams, fraud, theft, and piracy are legitimate exercises of government power."
NIMFY--Not in my front yard
It seems I’m destined to be the lone voice shouting into the wind that highly visible trash cans and recycling containers intended to improve the environment cause ugly visual pollution. I got absolutely nowhere complaining that our large suburban church put its Abitibi Consolidated Paper Bins (bright green and yellow) virtually in the front yard of the Mill Run Church, and is almost as obvious at the Lytham Road campus.
This year Lakeside has started a recyclable program with each cottage owner being charged $60 a year to have an extremely large, bright blue rolling container --where? Our properties in some areas are small--about 30’ wide, with driveways, set backs, landscaping, and garden sheds or garages which hold boats, bicycles, and junk. So guess where the trash and recyclable containers are? Either at the street for several days between pick-ups, or sitting in the front or side yard. At one place I stopped today I counted at least 10 trash cans from where I stood and Thursday isn‘t a pick up day. Sometimes it’s a renter problem. The renter checks out on Saturday, puts the trash at the street (we don’t have curbs), and it is not picked up until Tuesday morning. If the cottage isn’t occupied the next week, the trash cans may sit there for days, or until a neighbor drags it to the side of the house, where it’s only slightly less obvious. If I were to replace every trash can I see on my morning walks, I'd be gone 4 hours instead of 30 minutes. Some containers have a permanent home in the front yard. Since writing about garages, I’ve seen plenty of garages and sheds that could be used to hold the containers, but no one thinks of it. It would also keep the raccoons and skunks under control. Our shed is tiny, and so is our lot, but I've seen cottages with 3 sheds, a garage, and the trash cans in front. Our "big blue" is just as obvious as everyone elses, but it's not at the street.
One of the oldest streets, lots of room in the rear
One of the newest streets, beautiful paving and landscaping; no plan for trash
President Hayes once stayed here; the trash can never moves
Not a good first impression for a potential buyer
This is a park, so even the Association is careless
This year Lakeside has started a recyclable program with each cottage owner being charged $60 a year to have an extremely large, bright blue rolling container --where? Our properties in some areas are small--about 30’ wide, with driveways, set backs, landscaping, and garden sheds or garages which hold boats, bicycles, and junk. So guess where the trash and recyclable containers are? Either at the street for several days between pick-ups, or sitting in the front or side yard. At one place I stopped today I counted at least 10 trash cans from where I stood and Thursday isn‘t a pick up day. Sometimes it’s a renter problem. The renter checks out on Saturday, puts the trash at the street (we don’t have curbs), and it is not picked up until Tuesday morning. If the cottage isn’t occupied the next week, the trash cans may sit there for days, or until a neighbor drags it to the side of the house, where it’s only slightly less obvious. If I were to replace every trash can I see on my morning walks, I'd be gone 4 hours instead of 30 minutes. Some containers have a permanent home in the front yard. Since writing about garages, I’ve seen plenty of garages and sheds that could be used to hold the containers, but no one thinks of it. It would also keep the raccoons and skunks under control. Our shed is tiny, and so is our lot, but I've seen cottages with 3 sheds, a garage, and the trash cans in front. Our "big blue" is just as obvious as everyone elses, but it's not at the street.
One of the oldest streets, lots of room in the rear
One of the newest streets, beautiful paving and landscaping; no plan for trash
President Hayes once stayed here; the trash can never moves
Not a good first impression for a potential buyer
This is a park, so even the Association is careless25 styles of blogging
Here's one for those of you who think you can't write a blog, or who just go anonymously to write comments at those blogs you don't like. 25 basic styles of blogging . I do most of them--some several times a day! Life blogging. Piggyback blogging. Guest Blogs. Memes. Events. Book reviews. And so forth. I didn't know anyone was keeping track or naming these styles. Must be librarians.
I came across the More Things on a Stick web site while poking around the topic "digital storytelling." I'd like to explain why this is important in academe, but haven't been able to figure out why it is all the rage. There was a workshop at Ohio State this summer. A former colleague, Karen Diaz, has written a book on its use in libraries. I can't learn anything in 2-3 minutes, especially not on video.
My grandmother Mary was a scrapbooker in childhood--began with pretty postcards and advertisements probably before she could read and then moved on to clipping cute sayings, recipes, and stories and pasting them into the old account books of her father to save on paper. I used her scrapbooks to determine what magazines and newspapers a 19th century farm family read. I would love to be able to lift some and read great-grandfather's farm accounts, but whatever homemade glue she used is like cement. Then my mother kept a "commonplace book" for years in a small 3-ring notebook of items she liked and clipped out of magazines. After her death, my niece Julie photocopied it and so its poetry, cartoons and stories from the 1940s through the 1970s were shared with a wider audience of grandchildren.
And of course, I blog. Eleven, or is it twelve, blogs. But digital story telling? Now that sounds like all work and no fun, and not enough writing.
I came across the More Things on a Stick web site while poking around the topic "digital storytelling." I'd like to explain why this is important in academe, but haven't been able to figure out why it is all the rage. There was a workshop at Ohio State this summer. A former colleague, Karen Diaz, has written a book on its use in libraries. I can't learn anything in 2-3 minutes, especially not on video.
My grandmother Mary was a scrapbooker in childhood--began with pretty postcards and advertisements probably before she could read and then moved on to clipping cute sayings, recipes, and stories and pasting them into the old account books of her father to save on paper. I used her scrapbooks to determine what magazines and newspapers a 19th century farm family read. I would love to be able to lift some and read great-grandfather's farm accounts, but whatever homemade glue she used is like cement. Then my mother kept a "commonplace book" for years in a small 3-ring notebook of items she liked and clipped out of magazines. After her death, my niece Julie photocopied it and so its poetry, cartoons and stories from the 1940s through the 1970s were shared with a wider audience of grandchildren.
And of course, I blog. Eleven, or is it twelve, blogs. But digital story telling? Now that sounds like all work and no fun, and not enough writing.
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Suits from central casting
Excerpted From VIN SUPRYNOWICZ: “His [Ted Kennedy] monument stands all around us”
"I was raised a New England Democrat. Far from hating the Kennedys, I suppose I almost worshiped them. I wish John and Bobby had not been killed. Though you would have had to be deaf not to hear older New Englanders note that the family money had come from crime (bootlegging, specifically); that JFK's multiple adulteries (including with Sam Giancana's Mafia moll, Judith Campbell Exner -- in the White House!), creating so much cover-up work for the press and the Secret Service, so disrespectful of the lovely mother of his young children, only echoed his father's famous affair with Hollywood actress Gloria Swanson; that he was asking for trouble when he asked the unions and the mob to help him steal the presidency by rigging the returns in Illinois and West Virginia -- and then turned his back on them, actually siccing his younger brother Bobby on them like an attack dog, as soon as he got elected.
Republicans fail by losing the presidency when they do the sensible thing: nominating old Washington hands like Bob Dole, a perfectly decent fellow who knew the ropes and probably would have made a competent if uninspiring administrator. A "go-along" kind of guy with unarticulated (if any) economic principles who never stood in the path of the profligacies of Ted Kennedy and his ilk, Bob Dole was no hero of mine.
But Democrats do something far more interesting. Democrats fail -- not incrementally but massively, disastrously -- by winning the presidency, which they do by nominating virile younger men in whom Americans see the image of the brave, handsome, smooth-talking, dapper guy they wish they were.
John F. Kennedy was woefully unprepared to be president. His lack of experience and his health problems, so obligingly covered up by a press corps that loved him -- Addison's disease, colitis and back problems so severe he had to wear a brace, possibly caused by his decades-long steroid treatments, while all we got to see was touch football on the beach -- left him woefully inadequate in his summit meetings with Khrushchev in Vienna. Khrushchev read the callow young president as a playboy dilettante and decided he could get away with deploying missiles to Cuba, bringing the world to the brink of war.
Did Kennedy "bravely stand him down," as we were all taught? Kennedy agreed to pull our own missiles out of Turkey. (We're told "they were obsolete, anyway." We won the battle of Guadalcancal with stuff that was more obsolete.) Khrushchev won ... in the short run, which is all the victory a socialist can ever hope for, given that their underlying philosophy will always breed poverty and disaster in the end.
Bill Clinton was of the same mold but worse -- a greedy crook with his hand always out for a check (whether it be a corporation looking for a contract in Little Rock, or the Chinese military seeking our satellite and missile technology), but nonetheless a big, handsome teddy bear of a foul-mouthed multiple adulterer, if not (as I believe) something closer to a serial rapist.
And now the Democrats have given us Barack Obama, a handsome, dapper, smooth-talking, virile younger president who is -- hard as it is to believe -- vastly less qualified for the presidency than John F. Kennedy.
He has no idea he has taken an oath to protect a Constitution that promises us a government of sharply limited powers. (Where in that Constitution does he find any authority for federal bureaucrats to manage auto companies? To meddle in medicine or insurance?) He has no experience commanding even the small military units once officered by JFK or Jimmy Carter -- let alone the mighty administrative experience in matters of life and death once shouldered by Washington, Jackson, Eisenhower.
He has never worked in, let alone managed, a small business that had to meet payroll by selling actual merchandise to actual customers. (At least Harry Truman once sold shirts.) He is the perfect creature of the arrogant leftist academy -- actually believing in the magic power of rhetoric to alter reality, seeing no need to test out such theories on some little hamburger or yogurt stand before attempting to micro-manage the largest economy in the world.
For six months, Barack Obama has had it all his way, with a populace virtually hypnotized into allowing him to advance a far-left agenda learned at the knees of his mother's communist friends, aided by such powerful and privileged yet philosophically hollow allies as Ted Kennedy."
"I was raised a New England Democrat. Far from hating the Kennedys, I suppose I almost worshiped them. I wish John and Bobby had not been killed. Though you would have had to be deaf not to hear older New Englanders note that the family money had come from crime (bootlegging, specifically); that JFK's multiple adulteries (including with Sam Giancana's Mafia moll, Judith Campbell Exner -- in the White House!), creating so much cover-up work for the press and the Secret Service, so disrespectful of the lovely mother of his young children, only echoed his father's famous affair with Hollywood actress Gloria Swanson; that he was asking for trouble when he asked the unions and the mob to help him steal the presidency by rigging the returns in Illinois and West Virginia -- and then turned his back on them, actually siccing his younger brother Bobby on them like an attack dog, as soon as he got elected.
Republicans fail by losing the presidency when they do the sensible thing: nominating old Washington hands like Bob Dole, a perfectly decent fellow who knew the ropes and probably would have made a competent if uninspiring administrator. A "go-along" kind of guy with unarticulated (if any) economic principles who never stood in the path of the profligacies of Ted Kennedy and his ilk, Bob Dole was no hero of mine.
But Democrats do something far more interesting. Democrats fail -- not incrementally but massively, disastrously -- by winning the presidency, which they do by nominating virile younger men in whom Americans see the image of the brave, handsome, smooth-talking, dapper guy they wish they were.
John F. Kennedy was woefully unprepared to be president. His lack of experience and his health problems, so obligingly covered up by a press corps that loved him -- Addison's disease, colitis and back problems so severe he had to wear a brace, possibly caused by his decades-long steroid treatments, while all we got to see was touch football on the beach -- left him woefully inadequate in his summit meetings with Khrushchev in Vienna. Khrushchev read the callow young president as a playboy dilettante and decided he could get away with deploying missiles to Cuba, bringing the world to the brink of war.
Did Kennedy "bravely stand him down," as we were all taught? Kennedy agreed to pull our own missiles out of Turkey. (We're told "they were obsolete, anyway." We won the battle of Guadalcancal with stuff that was more obsolete.) Khrushchev won ... in the short run, which is all the victory a socialist can ever hope for, given that their underlying philosophy will always breed poverty and disaster in the end.
Bill Clinton was of the same mold but worse -- a greedy crook with his hand always out for a check (whether it be a corporation looking for a contract in Little Rock, or the Chinese military seeking our satellite and missile technology), but nonetheless a big, handsome teddy bear of a foul-mouthed multiple adulterer, if not (as I believe) something closer to a serial rapist.
And now the Democrats have given us Barack Obama, a handsome, dapper, smooth-talking, virile younger president who is -- hard as it is to believe -- vastly less qualified for the presidency than John F. Kennedy.
He has no idea he has taken an oath to protect a Constitution that promises us a government of sharply limited powers. (Where in that Constitution does he find any authority for federal bureaucrats to manage auto companies? To meddle in medicine or insurance?) He has no experience commanding even the small military units once officered by JFK or Jimmy Carter -- let alone the mighty administrative experience in matters of life and death once shouldered by Washington, Jackson, Eisenhower.
He has never worked in, let alone managed, a small business that had to meet payroll by selling actual merchandise to actual customers. (At least Harry Truman once sold shirts.) He is the perfect creature of the arrogant leftist academy -- actually believing in the magic power of rhetoric to alter reality, seeing no need to test out such theories on some little hamburger or yogurt stand before attempting to micro-manage the largest economy in the world.
For six months, Barack Obama has had it all his way, with a populace virtually hypnotized into allowing him to advance a far-left agenda learned at the knees of his mother's communist friends, aided by such powerful and privileged yet philosophically hollow allies as Ted Kennedy."
A reminder for seniors about health
As I've noted before, "you can't beat good genes. That's still the number one factor in good health and a long life, and you didn't have a thing to do with it. If you're still alive tomorrow, give thanks for your parents and grandparents who gave you a good start. My mother died in her 88th year, her brother at 99, her father at 94, and her sister is still going at 92. Dad died at 89, his father at 92, and his grandfather was 88 in 1950 when he died, and one of his daughters (my grandmother's sister) recently died in her 93rd year.
Second, don't smoke;
third, drink alcohol only in moderation, and if you think a 6 pack after work is moderation, you need to relearn the meaning of the word;
fourth, reduce your calories;
and fifth, get some regular exercise."
And then, fight the President and Congress tooth and nail against their take-over of the health care industry. It won't be good health for you, that's for sure.
Second, don't smoke;
third, drink alcohol only in moderation, and if you think a 6 pack after work is moderation, you need to relearn the meaning of the word;
fourth, reduce your calories;
and fifth, get some regular exercise."
And then, fight the President and Congress tooth and nail against their take-over of the health care industry. It won't be good health for you, that's for sure.
It's about love
"Lakeside is for lovers" is a phrase I’ve seen on cards, buttons, t-shirts and other memorabilia. And it’s true--and not just for the strolling, hand-holding lovers you see on the dock.
Several years ago I wrote a poem which was published in the weekly newspaper called “The last day of July” about a young couple who met and parted at Lakeside during WWII, planning to see each other the next summer. But it didn’t happen. Finally, when both were great-grandparents some 60 summers later, they met again, but it was the last day of July and their summers were over.
Another type of love I see so often at Lakeside is that of adoptive and foster families. On my corner of Lakeside I’ve seen the American melting pot of special needs and international adoption. Now some of those children are grown and bringing their bi-racial, multi-ethnic children to be Lakesiders too. I saw these children only a few weeks of the year, so their growth and maturity are compressed. First they were toddlers and then it seemed overnight pouty teen-agers with more than the usual identity issues, and now their kids are almost as tall as grandma and grandpa.
At Lakeside I see a love for a past that is often a nostalgic fantasy. In the 70s Lakeside looked to me like the sleepy towns of the 1940s or 1950s, and now it seems to be a spiffy stage set for a 1970s or 1980s TV show, but with i-pods instead of boom boxes and rip rap along the lakefront instead of flat rocks easing into the lake. But it is always “that’s how life used to be” to people who came here as children, like my 92 year old neighbor who began coming when she was 6 months old.
Lakeside has porches often filled with four generations of family--laughing, telling stories on each other, playing monopoly or scrabble. I’ve attended 90th birthday parties and 50th wedding anniversary celebrations for people who were younger than I am now when I met them in our early years at Lakeside. But I’ve also written a poem about a college student who spent the summer riding her bike up and down the streets gazing at the homes where her family used to be--a family now torn up by divorce and scattered, a family that would never again have all those generations together.
On my walks along Lakeside streets (around 100 this summer) I see memorials and plaques for people I didn’t know had died--and family and friends wanted them to remain a part of the community with a tree, or flower bed, or a shelter for a potato digger.
At Lakeside, one can compress a love of learning into a week or a season--environment, Civil War, literature, music, politics, current events, health or finances. We do more and hear more these few weeks than all the rest of the year. I go home to Columbus in September vowing to find similar activities, but as the cold weather and early sunsets descend, I give up on being a Lakeside lover until the next year.
Several years ago I wrote a poem which was published in the weekly newspaper called “The last day of July” about a young couple who met and parted at Lakeside during WWII, planning to see each other the next summer. But it didn’t happen. Finally, when both were great-grandparents some 60 summers later, they met again, but it was the last day of July and their summers were over.
Another type of love I see so often at Lakeside is that of adoptive and foster families. On my corner of Lakeside I’ve seen the American melting pot of special needs and international adoption. Now some of those children are grown and bringing their bi-racial, multi-ethnic children to be Lakesiders too. I saw these children only a few weeks of the year, so their growth and maturity are compressed. First they were toddlers and then it seemed overnight pouty teen-agers with more than the usual identity issues, and now their kids are almost as tall as grandma and grandpa.
At Lakeside I see a love for a past that is often a nostalgic fantasy. In the 70s Lakeside looked to me like the sleepy towns of the 1940s or 1950s, and now it seems to be a spiffy stage set for a 1970s or 1980s TV show, but with i-pods instead of boom boxes and rip rap along the lakefront instead of flat rocks easing into the lake. But it is always “that’s how life used to be” to people who came here as children, like my 92 year old neighbor who began coming when she was 6 months old.
Lakeside has porches often filled with four generations of family--laughing, telling stories on each other, playing monopoly or scrabble. I’ve attended 90th birthday parties and 50th wedding anniversary celebrations for people who were younger than I am now when I met them in our early years at Lakeside. But I’ve also written a poem about a college student who spent the summer riding her bike up and down the streets gazing at the homes where her family used to be--a family now torn up by divorce and scattered, a family that would never again have all those generations together.
On my walks along Lakeside streets (around 100 this summer) I see memorials and plaques for people I didn’t know had died--and family and friends wanted them to remain a part of the community with a tree, or flower bed, or a shelter for a potato digger.
At Lakeside, one can compress a love of learning into a week or a season--environment, Civil War, literature, music, politics, current events, health or finances. We do more and hear more these few weeks than all the rest of the year. I go home to Columbus in September vowing to find similar activities, but as the cold weather and early sunsets descend, I give up on being a Lakeside lover until the next year.
Reagan statue unveiled in Dixon, Illinois
The city of Dixon, Illinois on the Rock River hopes to revitalize the downtown area and has developed "Heritage Crossing Riverfront Plaza." Poet William Cullen Bryant, a proponent of Manhattan’s Central Park, called the Rock River “one of the most beautiful of our western streams,” and Ronald Reagan who was a life guard at near by Lowell Park in 1926, remembered the "Hudson of the Midwest" fondly. On August 14 a statue Reagan, "Begins the Trail" by Dixon native and sculptor Don Reed was unveiled and dedicated. The artist said "he hoped the figure captured some of Reagan’s “energy and warmth” and that residents would be able to “identify with him as someone a lot like us.” Nancy Reagan sent a letter thanking the city, and said "Ronnie would be pleased." The statue "depicts the future California governor and two-term president of the United States as a 39-year-old movie star riding a horse in a hometown parade, prior to his entry into politics." (All information from various editions of saukvalley.com) Another account reports that the dammed up swimming area where he was a lifeguard for 7 years was very dangerous and he is credited with saving 77 swimmers.
I haven't had much luck with a good photo to download, but here are two from Shaw News Service. Didn't find one in the Rockford paper. Reagan lived in Dixon until 1933; he attended Eureka College.
I haven't had much luck with a good photo to download, but here are two from Shaw News Service. Didn't find one in the Rockford paper. Reagan lived in Dixon until 1933; he attended Eureka College.
DNC Astroturf
The DNC (Pelosi, too) has called grassroots tea parties and protests "astroturf." Now they have the nerve to call their own organized group a "grassroots project." [for a Columbus, GA gathering]
- "As Members of Congress get ready to head back to Washington, Organizing for America (OFA), a grassroots project of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) dedicated to supporting the President’s agenda for change, will hold a rally Tuesday, September 1, 11:30 . . . "
Health Care for Obama Now (H-CON)
Here's a video of Health Care for America Now (HCAN) instructing the ethically challenged in how to prevent the opposition from having a voice at Jan Schakowsky's (D-IL) townhall meeting. Nice. "Be civil, but shut 'em down with HEALTH CARE NOW until they get frustrated." I wonder if they've ever been smacked with a cane? Seniors are getting a bit testy at free care for illegals, and limited care for those who paid for the system.
State of Emergency--dialysis for illegal immigrants
The University Medical Center in Las Vegas is a tax supported hospital and is required by federal law to treat illegal immigrants. Illegals (or foreign nationals) come to the ER for kidney dialysis and the cost at UMC can run from $11,000 to $18,000 per visit for an emergency dialysis patient because of the testing required and because they are so sick when they come. The federal government has kicked the can down the road on the immigrant health issue as it has on many unfunded mandates, and the costs land on the local medical facilities. Read the full story. This is just one hospital spending $24 million a year; it's even worse in California, and nationwide it’s in the billions.
This story punctures the myth that the poor don’t have health care, or that the billions spent on illegals for their health care isn’t a huge problem which the federal government, regardless of who’s in the White House or Congress, has steadfastly refused to solve. Mexico really doesn’t want its citizens to come home. If the brilliant minds from anarchist to liberal to libertarian in Washington haven't been able to solve this small piece of the puzzle for just one disease for one specific group, what makes you think they can take over the whole enchilada without a huge, ongoing case of indigestion?
This story punctures the myth that the poor don’t have health care, or that the billions spent on illegals for their health care isn’t a huge problem which the federal government, regardless of who’s in the White House or Congress, has steadfastly refused to solve. Mexico really doesn’t want its citizens to come home. If the brilliant minds from anarchist to liberal to libertarian in Washington haven't been able to solve this small piece of the puzzle for just one disease for one specific group, what makes you think they can take over the whole enchilada without a huge, ongoing case of indigestion?
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Recommended on-line medical journal
I recommend journals, as well as websites. I can't help myself. If you or anyone you care about has a problem with thyroid, you can sign up for a free subscription to Clinical Thyroidology, published by the American Thyroid Association. Oh sure. I can't understand everything. But I can read an editorial, abstract, summary and conclusions. Waiting for CBS or ABC to give it a snippet really isn't satisfactory.
Obama less popular than Bush
The leftists among us are blaming everyone but themselves for the Obama Slide. They can't believe the average voter actually understands that health care bill, or that we care about the trillions he's spending, or that we don't approve of him destroying business or that we know cap and tax is a huge hoax to enrich the same people and pols who already own the energy supply.
In March, 50 days after taking office and before the big health care debate, Obama’s poll numbers were falling, primarily because of his handling of the economy.
“Overall, Rasmussen Reports shows a 56%-43% approval, with a third strongly disapproving of the president's performance. This is a substantial degree of polarization so early in the administration. Mr. Obama has lost virtually all of his Republican support and a good part of his Independent support, and the trend is decidedly negative.” via WSJ
And then, end of July, 6 months into his term, despite his stumbling defense of Obamacare:
“30 percent of the nation's voters "strongly approve" of Mr. Obama's job performance, according to a survey released Monday by the Rasmussen polling organization. The poll showed that 40 percent "strongly disapprove" of the president's performance, marking the first time the disparity has reached double digits.”
Now at 7 months, it’s about 37% approval for Obama--depending on the topic and pollster.
George W. Bush was in office 37 months with an unpopular war before he fell to the Obama historically low level according to Gallup.
“President Barack Obama's approval ratings, once seen as historically high, could soon be among the worst early poll numbers for a modern American president.
He has already, however, outlasted the brief honeymoon of the last Democratic president, Bill Clinton.
The Gallup Organization — whose polls show Obama at just 50 percent approval rating less than eight months into his first term — says only two modern presidents, Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton, saw their approval ratings drop below 50 percent by this time in their presidencies. Ronald Reagan is the next in line, with his numbers dipping after 10 months, while Jimmy Carter retained positive approval numbers for more than a year.” via Politico
In March, 50 days after taking office and before the big health care debate, Obama’s poll numbers were falling, primarily because of his handling of the economy.
“Overall, Rasmussen Reports shows a 56%-43% approval, with a third strongly disapproving of the president's performance. This is a substantial degree of polarization so early in the administration. Mr. Obama has lost virtually all of his Republican support and a good part of his Independent support, and the trend is decidedly negative.” via WSJ
And then, end of July, 6 months into his term, despite his stumbling defense of Obamacare:
“30 percent of the nation's voters "strongly approve" of Mr. Obama's job performance, according to a survey released Monday by the Rasmussen polling organization. The poll showed that 40 percent "strongly disapprove" of the president's performance, marking the first time the disparity has reached double digits.”
Now at 7 months, it’s about 37% approval for Obama--depending on the topic and pollster.
George W. Bush was in office 37 months with an unpopular war before he fell to the Obama historically low level according to Gallup.
“President Barack Obama's approval ratings, once seen as historically high, could soon be among the worst early poll numbers for a modern American president.
He has already, however, outlasted the brief honeymoon of the last Democratic president, Bill Clinton.
The Gallup Organization — whose polls show Obama at just 50 percent approval rating less than eight months into his first term — says only two modern presidents, Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton, saw their approval ratings drop below 50 percent by this time in their presidencies. Ronald Reagan is the next in line, with his numbers dipping after 10 months, while Jimmy Carter retained positive approval numbers for more than a year.” via Politico
Traveling south
We have five Purple Martin houses at the end of our street. In June, they were all full occupancy, with parents raising families and busy eating insects. Now they are empty. Gone to winter in Brazil.
I'd planned to go back to Columbus this week, but the weather forecast was fabulous, so I decided to stay. This is Senior Venture Week at Lakeside and the theme is "Ohio history: from the Ice Age to Ice Cream." There are two days of lectures on Ohio canals, two on various ice age topics (our under a glacier period for you g-warmists), and lectures on our 8 Presidents and Toft's Dairy (my favorite ice cream). Maybe there will be samples? Love that Moose Tracks!
Last night after the movie, "My sister's keeper" based on a Jodi Picoult novel, we had a discussion on biomedical ethics led by a local pastor. Some people in the audience had read the book, and weren't happy with the change in ending. SPOILER--don't read this:
- "The Book: Anna wins her case, but before she can announce whether she's decided to give her kidney to Kate, she's involved in a car accident and becomes brain-dead. Her lawyer, who has power of attorney over Anna, grants the kidney to Kate, who lives -- believing that she was given a second chance because Anna took her spot in heaven.
The Movie: Before the case is decided, Kate and Anna's brother Jesse reveals that Kate no longer desires to undergo operations. Their mother comes to terms with the impending demise of Kate. After Kate dies, Anna's lawyer visits the house with legal papers claiming she has won the case and now has medical emancipation from her parents."
Spending in the name of Obama
It's amazing how many advertisers are using Obama's name to hawk their product. Reminds me of the Dr. Oz, Oprah, and Rachel Ray ads which traffic in their names without permission. I've seen ads like
- "President Obama wants you to go back to school"
"President Obama wants you to have a new car"
"President Obama wants you to save your home"
and this one by an American whose eyes were opened by his schooling in Iran selling his gaming technology,
"This unique approach is the embodiment of “e-diplomacy,” and reflects the new “soft diplomacy” approach favored by the Obama Administration."
- For those of you who want to learn the secrets of the Obama Campaign's online fundraising success and how you can apply them at your college or university, there will be a live, 60-minute Webinar:
"Fundraising Secrets from the Obama Campaign Your College Can Use Now"
Wednesday, September 16, 2009 1:00 - 2:00 PM (ET) . . .
Before joining the Obama campaign in Chicago, Steve managed online organizing at the Center for American Progress [Clinton retreads now in Obama Camp which became leading war room for escalation in Afghanistan], where he built support for progressive [i.e. socialist/marxist] positions on issues ranging from alternative fuels to ending the war in Iraq. Steve has also managed online operations for the Children's Defense Fund and American University's College of Arts and Sciences.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Murray's going to Washington!
Murray from Illinois has e-mailed his group:
"OK THAT'S IT, I'VE HAD IT!!! I've written to my legislators and received no satisfactory response. Plus Senator Durbin refuses to even acknowledge I exist. He refuses to hold any town meetings and professes that he'll not be "suckered punched" by a bunch of crazies like me. So I'll be off to DC to join the thousands of other crazies on 9/12 to protest the destruction of our great country. You know... the one Obama calls the greatest country in the world that he wants to change??
Anyway, just in case I run into one of your senators, tell me their name and what you would like me to say to them. Just so you don't ask me to tell him/her to keep up the good work!"
"OK THAT'S IT, I'VE HAD IT!!! I've written to my legislators and received no satisfactory response. Plus Senator Durbin refuses to even acknowledge I exist. He refuses to hold any town meetings and professes that he'll not be "suckered punched" by a bunch of crazies like me. So I'll be off to DC to join the thousands of other crazies on 9/12 to protest the destruction of our great country. You know... the one Obama calls the greatest country in the world that he wants to change??
Anyway, just in case I run into one of your senators, tell me their name and what you would like me to say to them. Just so you don't ask me to tell him/her to keep up the good work!"
Monday Memories from my cousin
Bill and Gayle were married August 30, 1959 in the Mt. Morris, Illinois Church of the Brethren. She writes this about the memories of the last 50 years.
"We grew up on the same street, went to the same school and attended the same church. Our first date was on June 5, 1955. Our first home was Mrs. Isley’s upstairs apartment 3 blocks from the campus of the University of Northern Iowa where we were students.
Gayle remembers:
-purchasing an Eureka vacuum cleaner with wedding money
-washing, starching, hanging, sprinkling and ironing ALL our clothes
-being afraid to light our gas oven & burning cookies
-waxing our linoleum floors every Saturday
-shopping at Cardinal Grocery & saving King Korn yellow stamps
-attending all of Bill’s varsity basketball games
-being relieved to learn that my new husband cleaned his own “game”
-wearing skirts, never slacks or jeans, to class
-playing Johnny Mathis, Ray Conniff, Nat King Cole, Percy Faith & Henry Mancini records on our stereo (no TV)
-intertwining “homemaking” with “homework”
Bill remembers:
-driving our ‘48 green Plymouth sedan
-having a basketball scholarship to help with expenses
-eating at the Panther Pizzeria after games (Pizza was new back then)
-working at the Western Auto & selling a lot of Lawn Boy mowers (new)
-hunting for pheasant and quail on Iowa farms
-having teammates over for meals
-juggling basketball practices, games, roadtrips and classes
We laughed a lot that first year and we still do; but the important relationship with our Lord and Savior didn’t come until we went to Alaska to teach. It has been our joy to follow Christ through the ups and downs of life for many years now. We’ve been blessed with four beautiful children and eleven grandchildren so far. We are grateful for our fifty years together. We want to encourage you to trust and obey God on your personal journey too!"
Thank you Gayle--wonderful memories and good advice!
I vaguely remember ironing.
"We grew up on the same street, went to the same school and attended the same church. Our first date was on June 5, 1955. Our first home was Mrs. Isley’s upstairs apartment 3 blocks from the campus of the University of Northern Iowa where we were students.
Gayle remembers:
-purchasing an Eureka vacuum cleaner with wedding money
-washing, starching, hanging, sprinkling and ironing ALL our clothes
-being afraid to light our gas oven & burning cookies
-waxing our linoleum floors every Saturday
-shopping at Cardinal Grocery & saving King Korn yellow stamps
-attending all of Bill’s varsity basketball games
-being relieved to learn that my new husband cleaned his own “game”
-wearing skirts, never slacks or jeans, to class
-playing Johnny Mathis, Ray Conniff, Nat King Cole, Percy Faith & Henry Mancini records on our stereo (no TV)
-intertwining “homemaking” with “homework”
Bill remembers:
-driving our ‘48 green Plymouth sedan
-having a basketball scholarship to help with expenses
-eating at the Panther Pizzeria after games (Pizza was new back then)
-working at the Western Auto & selling a lot of Lawn Boy mowers (new)
-hunting for pheasant and quail on Iowa farms
-having teammates over for meals
-juggling basketball practices, games, roadtrips and classes
We laughed a lot that first year and we still do; but the important relationship with our Lord and Savior didn’t come until we went to Alaska to teach. It has been our joy to follow Christ through the ups and downs of life for many years now. We’ve been blessed with four beautiful children and eleven grandchildren so far. We are grateful for our fifty years together. We want to encourage you to trust and obey God on your personal journey too!"
Thank you Gayle--wonderful memories and good advice!
I vaguely remember ironing.
Another one who has read the HR 3200
Michael Connelly, a constitutional lawyer writes the Truth about the Health Care Bills.
After reading the bill, “I have concluded that this legislation really has no intention of providing affordable health care choices. Instead it is a convenient cover for the most massive transfer of power to the Executive Branch of government that has ever occurred, or even been contemplated. If this law or a similar one is adopted, major portions of the Constitution of the United States will effectively have been destroyed.
The first thing to go will be the masterfully crafted balance of power between the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of the U.S. Government. . . “
Read his resume at his website. Contact him, not me if you disgree with his arguments which include the bill rations health care, particularly for senior citizens and other classes of citizens, provides for free health care for illegal immigrants, free abortion services, and probably forced participation in abortions by members of the medical profession and eventually would force private insurance companies out of business and put everyone into a government run system.
After reading the bill, “I have concluded that this legislation really has no intention of providing affordable health care choices. Instead it is a convenient cover for the most massive transfer of power to the Executive Branch of government that has ever occurred, or even been contemplated. If this law or a similar one is adopted, major portions of the Constitution of the United States will effectively have been destroyed.
The first thing to go will be the masterfully crafted balance of power between the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of the U.S. Government. . . “
Read his resume at his website. Contact him, not me if you disgree with his arguments which include the bill rations health care, particularly for senior citizens and other classes of citizens, provides for free health care for illegal immigrants, free abortion services, and probably forced participation in abortions by members of the medical profession and eventually would force private insurance companies out of business and put everyone into a government run system.
Maddy has Crohn's Disease--an ethics tangle
Quite by accident, I discovered that one of my blogs on HR 3200 appeared as a link on a college reading list on medical ethics (so if you commented, you‘re there too). That got me interested in the program and I began browsing some of the other offerings. Some true to life scenarios were presented for students to discuss, and I thought this one about Maddy who has Crohn’s Disease was very interesting. I have a neighbor with Crohn’s (she’s 92, so has managed it well living longer than my parents who had no significant health problems until the final month of their lives at 88 and 89), and I used to work for a dear woman who had IBD (irritable bowel disease) which can be very debilitating.
Reading through the ethical responses by the hospital, her doctor, her friends, and society at large was really interesting. But there was no response from Maddy‘s point of view. What should have been her ethical response as a 25 year old to her illness, which she had known about since junior high school?
According to the information given, she had graduated from college, during which she’d had very few flare ups, but now had become very ill with frequent problems brought on by skipping doctor’s appointments and not eating right, worsened by moving away from home (just a guess, but Mom probably watched her diet). She’d become dehydrated and malnourished, terrible conditions for someone with Crohn’s, but the underlying assumption of the writer of the problem was this was caused by lack of insurance. She then required hospitalization, IVs, antibiotics, and surgery, which she didn’t choose. Her parents in the meanwhile (but not at the beginning) were experiencing financial set backs and she didn’t want to bother them with her problems. So, if I read the responses correctly, the problem then falls in the lap of the doctor, the hospital, the friends, and society at large.
Here’s my thoughts about Maddy.
1) If a person has a chronic or debilitating illness, she may have to modify her life’s dreams and career options. Her chosen field didn’t look promising to me either for income, or for a reduced-stress life (very important for these types of diseases). I don’t know what you do with a degree in “health psychology” but having worked in academe most of my professional life, it sounds like a way to keep the faculty employed. There are thousands of programs at the university level that lead nowhere except to frustration, low-income and living on credit.
2) She, her parents, and doctor had about 12 years to plan for this event (living on her own), knowing her student or parents' insurance would end, and that employer insurance may have requirements about pre-existing conditions.
3) She most likely, although it doesn’t say, became careless about the flare-ups since they had been rare before she graduated. Young people suffer from lack of learning from hindsight and planning with foresight.
4) She began missing doctor appointments and meds after graduation, rather than giving up other things in her life. This has a huge snowball effect. I don’t know what these could have been, and I know it sounds cruel and unAmerican to say “drop cable, cell phone, hair appointments, or nights out with friends“ so you can pay for your meds, but if you know the consequences of these missed steps, you can’t expect to stay healthy.
5) As a result of her own bad decisions, she is forced to return home a sick woman who will get even sicker to live with her family who is already under terrible stress from her father’s lost job and two younger children to support.
[Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located in California's Silicon Valley, offers its more than 8,000 students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, and engineering, plus master's, Ph.D., and law degrees.]
Reading through the ethical responses by the hospital, her doctor, her friends, and society at large was really interesting. But there was no response from Maddy‘s point of view. What should have been her ethical response as a 25 year old to her illness, which she had known about since junior high school?
According to the information given, she had graduated from college, during which she’d had very few flare ups, but now had become very ill with frequent problems brought on by skipping doctor’s appointments and not eating right, worsened by moving away from home (just a guess, but Mom probably watched her diet). She’d become dehydrated and malnourished, terrible conditions for someone with Crohn’s, but the underlying assumption of the writer of the problem was this was caused by lack of insurance. She then required hospitalization, IVs, antibiotics, and surgery, which she didn’t choose. Her parents in the meanwhile (but not at the beginning) were experiencing financial set backs and she didn’t want to bother them with her problems. So, if I read the responses correctly, the problem then falls in the lap of the doctor, the hospital, the friends, and society at large.
Here’s my thoughts about Maddy.
1) If a person has a chronic or debilitating illness, she may have to modify her life’s dreams and career options. Her chosen field didn’t look promising to me either for income, or for a reduced-stress life (very important for these types of diseases). I don’t know what you do with a degree in “health psychology” but having worked in academe most of my professional life, it sounds like a way to keep the faculty employed. There are thousands of programs at the university level that lead nowhere except to frustration, low-income and living on credit.
2) She, her parents, and doctor had about 12 years to plan for this event (living on her own), knowing her student or parents' insurance would end, and that employer insurance may have requirements about pre-existing conditions.
3) She most likely, although it doesn’t say, became careless about the flare-ups since they had been rare before she graduated. Young people suffer from lack of learning from hindsight and planning with foresight.
4) She began missing doctor appointments and meds after graduation, rather than giving up other things in her life. This has a huge snowball effect. I don’t know what these could have been, and I know it sounds cruel and unAmerican to say “drop cable, cell phone, hair appointments, or nights out with friends“ so you can pay for your meds, but if you know the consequences of these missed steps, you can’t expect to stay healthy.
5) As a result of her own bad decisions, she is forced to return home a sick woman who will get even sicker to live with her family who is already under terrible stress from her father’s lost job and two younger children to support.
[Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located in California's Silicon Valley, offers its more than 8,000 students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, and engineering, plus master's, Ph.D., and law degrees.]
Filthy lucre and H1N1
Filthy Lucre usually means obscene or shameful profit, but just plain old paper money is really dirty. I learned this sanitation tip when I was clerking at Zickuhr's Drug store in high school. According to a cartoon health item on the dangers of swine flu I saw this morning viruses can live on paper money for 2 weeks. I always shudder a bit when the coffee clerk pats or rubs the top of the paper top while serving me after handling the money. It would be much better to have the customer pick up and place the cover over the cup.
When I was the veterinary medicine librarian at Ohio State we were constantly washing our circ desk where the returned books came in--zoonotic diseases, you know. Books and hard surfaces in libraries, including keyboards, are really dirty--you could probably scrape them before you washed them.
Americans have a really bad nervous tic of constantly touching their face, nose, eyes, ears or hair while speaking, either casually, in conversation or from the podium. They even do it while on the phone, although the listerner can't see them. Thirty years ago I used to attend the "brown bag" sharing of the agricultural credit group at Ohio State. Over half of the grad students were from Asia or Africa. Since it wasn't my field (I was the librarian), I would amuse myself by noting face touching and nose rubbing by the speakers. I almost never saw a 3rd world student do that--it was about 100 to 1, in favor of the Americans.
When I was the veterinary medicine librarian at Ohio State we were constantly washing our circ desk where the returned books came in--zoonotic diseases, you know. Books and hard surfaces in libraries, including keyboards, are really dirty--you could probably scrape them before you washed them.
Americans have a really bad nervous tic of constantly touching their face, nose, eyes, ears or hair while speaking, either casually, in conversation or from the podium. They even do it while on the phone, although the listerner can't see them. Thirty years ago I used to attend the "brown bag" sharing of the agricultural credit group at Ohio State. Over half of the grad students were from Asia or Africa. Since it wasn't my field (I was the librarian), I would amuse myself by noting face touching and nose rubbing by the speakers. I almost never saw a 3rd world student do that--it was about 100 to 1, in favor of the Americans.
The rush to dim our lights
Howard M. Brandston, a lighting designer and artist, has a sensible, easy proposal for a test to use before we rush head long into dimming our lights with The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which will effectively phase out incandescent light bulbs by 2012-2014 in favor of compact fluorescent lamps, or CFLs.
Here's an acronym you'll definitely need to watch: ESPC, energy savings performance contracts: "CBO estimates that H.R. 6 will increase direct spending by $582 million over the 2008-2012 period and reduce it by $85 million over the 2008-2017 period. Those effects result primarily from provisions that increase mandates related to the use of renewable motor fuels, require federal agencies to meet new goals related to the efficiency of energy and water use, extend and expand federal agencies’ authority to enter into energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs)." That phrase is definitely like giving a credit card to your ex-girlfriend for a shopping spree.
As I was looking through the CBO cost estimates in the agriculture sector, I wondered if these biomass requirements are what caused the starvation and food riots in developing countries in 2008 (see Green Body Count). Even liberal, pro-green editorials noted the problem. Oh well, what's a few million starving brown or black children in less developed countries? It's always "all about us" isn't it? We have no idea what the CFLs will do to the quality of life here or in China where they use dirty coal to produce them or to the environment, but we rush head first into the dark tunnel anyway, thanks to Congress. (Except for his very limited time in the Senate, this one can't be laid at Obama's feet.)
- "Here's my modest proposal to determine whether the legislation actually serves people. Satisfy the proposed power limits in all public buildings, from museums, houses of worship and hospitals to the White House and the homes of all elected officials. Of course, this will include replacing all incandescents with CFLs. At the end of 18 months, we would check to be certain that the former lighting had not been reinstalled, and survey all users to determine satisfaction with the resulting lighting.
Based on the data collected, the Energy Independence and Security Act and energy legislation still in Congress would be amended to conform to the results of the test. Or better yet, scrapped in favor of a thoughtful process that could yield a set of recommendations that better serve our nation's needs by maximizing both human satisfaction and energy efficiency." Full article
Here's an acronym you'll definitely need to watch: ESPC, energy savings performance contracts: "CBO estimates that H.R. 6 will increase direct spending by $582 million over the 2008-2012 period and reduce it by $85 million over the 2008-2017 period. Those effects result primarily from provisions that increase mandates related to the use of renewable motor fuels, require federal agencies to meet new goals related to the efficiency of energy and water use, extend and expand federal agencies’ authority to enter into energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs)." That phrase is definitely like giving a credit card to your ex-girlfriend for a shopping spree.
As I was looking through the CBO cost estimates in the agriculture sector, I wondered if these biomass requirements are what caused the starvation and food riots in developing countries in 2008 (see Green Body Count). Even liberal, pro-green editorials noted the problem. Oh well, what's a few million starving brown or black children in less developed countries? It's always "all about us" isn't it? We have no idea what the CFLs will do to the quality of life here or in China where they use dirty coal to produce them or to the environment, but we rush head first into the dark tunnel anyway, thanks to Congress. (Except for his very limited time in the Senate, this one can't be laid at Obama's feet.)
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Kennedy's letter to the Pope
He should have been asking God for mercy, but wrote the Pope looking for his prayers.
- "I have done my best to champion the rights of the poor and open doors of economic opportunity. I have worked to welcome the immigrant, to fight discrimination, and expand access to health care and education. I have opposed the death penalty, and fought to end war. Those are the issues that have motivated me and been the focus of my work as a United States Senator. . . I have always tried to be a faithful Catholic Your Holiness. And though I have fallen short through human failings, I have never failed to believe and respect the fundamental teachings of my faith. I continue to pray for God's blessings on you and on our Church, and would be most thankful for your prayers for me." CNN
Cradle to the grave health care
We already know what Obamacare looks like; the other first famiies have had it for years:
- Native Americans have received federally funded health care for decades. A series of treaties, court cases and acts passed by Congress requires that the government provide low-cost and, in many cases, free care to American Indians. The Indian Health Service (IHS) is charged with delivering that care.
The IHS attempts to provide health care to American Indians and Alaska Natives in one of two ways. It runs 48 hospitals and 230 clinics for which it hires doctors, nurses, and staff and decides what services will be provided. Or it contracts with tribes under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act passed in 1975. In this case, the IHS provides funding for the tribe, which delivers health care to tribal members and makes its own decisions about what services to provide.
The IHS spends about $2,100 per Native American each year, which is considerably below the $6,000 spent per capita on health care across the U.S. But IHS spending per capita is about on par with Finland, Japan, Spain and other top 20 industrialized countries—countries that the Obama administration has said demonstrate that we can spend far less on health care and get better outcomes. In addition, IHS spending will go up by about $1 billion over the next year to reach a total of $4.5 billion by 2010. That includes a $454 million increase in its budget and another $500 million earmarked for the agency in the stimulus package.
Lakeside Cottage Architecture, pt. 12
Garages--the extreme makeover
Garages pt. 2, attached
Some garages were attached, then incorporated into the house; others became another cottage. These are what I call "extreme make-over" garages.
This used to be a four bay fire station, built in 1954, then was converted to a laundromat in 1970, with the last bay on the right becoming the drop off and staffing area, which a few years ago then became a very nice deli called Summer Stock. I've heard that this is its final year as a laundromat. Many now have machines in their cottages, but there's nothing like a commercial laundromat for mattress covers and bedspreads.
Garages pt. 2, attached
Some garages were attached, then incorporated into the house; others became another cottage. These are what I call "extreme make-over" garages.
This used to be a four bay fire station, built in 1954, then was converted to a laundromat in 1970, with the last bay on the right becoming the drop off and staffing area, which a few years ago then became a very nice deli called Summer Stock. I've heard that this is its final year as a laundromat. Many now have machines in their cottages, but there's nothing like a commercial laundromat for mattress covers and bedspreads.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Where's the "national" in NPR?
It could be the DPR, at least as long as I've been listening. Like all liberal entities, they see the splinter and miss the plank. At least they are blind to that plank in Obama's campaign rhetoric, which continues on and on and on. His health care advisor, Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, Rahm's brother, would have had Ted Kennedy removed from the surgeon's schedule, if he'd had his way (see his JAMA article on rationed care and the expense of treating elders last year). Anyway, back to hypocrisy and the frittering of our tax dollars on NPR from James Taranto, Aug. 28:
- "Julie Rovner of National Public Radio offers what we guess is supposed to be a defense of ObamaCare. She asserts that "recent claims" against the health-nationalization scheme, despite having been "all thoroughly debunked," have nonetheless been effective because "opponents used fear as a key weapon in their arsenal."
Of course, so have supporters. "What is truly scary, what is truly risky, is to do nothing," President Obama said earlier this month. And in reality, there is an element of fear in almost all political appeals. Opponents of just about any action will warn of its dire consequences, while proponents will make similar claims about the results of inaction. As it is perfectly rational to avoid dire consequences, fear often leads to highly sensible behavior.
That isn't quite how Rovner sees it, though. She ignores the scare tactics on the pro-ObamaCare side and portrays the other side's fears as something less than human.
Final look at week 10
Last night's program (end of week 10) was a surprise for me--I really hadn't read the publicity. A huge storm blew in about 6:30, and I almost stayed home! Others knew the quality of the performers and there was an excellent, warm and welcoming audience for Jay Ungar and Molly Mason. If you've never heard of them, you certainly know what they are most famous for--"Ashokan Farewell," which was the Grammy award soundtrack for Ken Burns' PBS The Civil War. They perform Appalachian, Cajun, Celtic tunes, and since it was Civil War week at Lakeside, we heard tunes popular on both sides of the conflict with an invitation to sing along. I had not attended the morning seminar, and it seems they also filled in for that speaker who was unavailable at the last minute.However, we also were treated to Mike and Ruthy, Jay's daughter and son-in-law. They have been performing together for a decade, sometimes with Pete Seeger's grandson as The Mammals, and Ruthy has the most fabulous voice (and I know I say that a lot, but she really does) I've ever heard at Hoover in this genre. You can go to their website and take a listen. At the end, Ruth brought out their young toddler, Will, who charmed the audience with his ability to keep time and say Hi and Bye in the microphone.
I mentioned earlier what a pleasure it was to hear Craig Symonds of the U.S. Naval Academy lecture about Civil War naval battles. But just as thrilling was Father Robert J. Miller, a Catholic priest from Chicago, who lectured Wednesday and Thursday on religion and faith in the Civil War (his book is Both prayed to the same God) and the role of the Jesuit chaplains on both sides which I think will be his next book. If he writes as well as he speaks (he was a member of the Redemptorists, the traveling mission preachers, sometimes preaching 5 times a week in missions work) I look forward to reading it. He is also a founder of Genesis Housing Development Corporation, as a way to stabilize neighborhoods. He is pastor of St. Dorothy Parish, an African American congregation in Chicago.I've never been a Civil War buff, but after attending the programs at Lakeside in the summer, I see you never run out of topics if that's your interest. Last year I inspected the latrines at the prisoner of war camp on Johnson's Island a few miles from here on one of the hottest and buggiest days of the summer.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Lakeside cottage architecture, pt. 11
The early attached garages
Early on, Lakesiders must have started attaching the garage to the house, especially if they didn't have large lots on which to build one. Here's an example of a classic, 19th century, cross gable house which used to have a garage attached to the house. The added garage has since been incorporated into the house with yet another addition behind it.
Between the two side walls, built into the corner, a slopping shed roof garage was created. The blue lines show the original house, the green lines the location of the former garage. (Please excuse the primitive drawing--it's my primitive, no upgrade Paint Program.) What's interesting about this garage, is that the original doors are still there, cut in half, to form windows that swing in. It was that way when the current owners bought it, and the garage probably wasn't as large as I've shown it, but no one really knows.
This one, a gable to the side shed dormer to the street, on the same street, had a garage added to the back, then that garage was incorporated as a room, and another garage was added to that. Because this is one of the older neighborhoods, space for a garage was limited.
Here's another house on the same street that was able to fit a garage on the lot, attached to the house. It still has the original doors.
This attached garage has 4 lights over three 2 panel doors, and I haven't seen very many of those. Also looks like the roof was raised after it was built.
Part one of garages, 6 lights over 3 panel doors
Early on, Lakesiders must have started attaching the garage to the house, especially if they didn't have large lots on which to build one. Here's an example of a classic, 19th century, cross gable house which used to have a garage attached to the house. The added garage has since been incorporated into the house with yet another addition behind it.
Between the two side walls, built into the corner, a slopping shed roof garage was created. The blue lines show the original house, the green lines the location of the former garage. (Please excuse the primitive drawing--it's my primitive, no upgrade Paint Program.) What's interesting about this garage, is that the original doors are still there, cut in half, to form windows that swing in. It was that way when the current owners bought it, and the garage probably wasn't as large as I've shown it, but no one really knows.
This one, a gable to the side shed dormer to the street, on the same street, had a garage added to the back, then that garage was incorporated as a room, and another garage was added to that. Because this is one of the older neighborhoods, space for a garage was limited.
Here's another house on the same street that was able to fit a garage on the lot, attached to the house. It still has the original doors.
This attached garage has 4 lights over three 2 panel doors, and I haven't seen very many of those. Also looks like the roof was raised after it was built.
Part one of garages, 6 lights over 3 panel doors
Will Teddycare replace Obamacare?
1) He was good to his mother and it was never reported that he tried to throw her under the bus even though she lived to 104. To my knowledge, no one officially from the government was included in her final moments or decisions.
2) He got the very best and the most advanced treatment for his brain tumor even though he was over 75, obese, and had led a debauched, dissolute life during which he didn't cultivate a "healthy lifestyle." At the end, no one from the government suggested he should just stop trying to get back to the Senate, take pain killers and give up sopping up health dollars. You go, Ted! That should be your legacy.
Leaving for college 1957 style
At least I think we drove the 1951 Packard, with Carol dropping me off at Manchester College in North Manchester, Indiana, and then driving on to Goshen College to park it until we needed it to drive home at Thanksgiving and Christmas. I suppose it's possible Dad drove us, left the car with Carol, and then took the bus back to Mt. Morris. I remember driving it back to Manchester after Christmas break loaded with about 4 or 5 other MC students and all their luggage and presents and having a flat tire.
Of course, we weren't the first to leave the nest, is my excuse for their casual behavior (compared to today's parents). It must get easier with the second and third. My oldest sister was married, Carol, the next oldest, left for Brethren Volunteer Service in Maryland in the late summer of 1955 for a year before starting a nursing program, and in June 1957 I hopped the Greyhound Bus and went all the way to Fresno, California by myself for a summer volunteer term.
Considering that I keep my cars 8-10 years, a 6 year old car looks pretty darn good in hind-sight, but my Dad loved snappy cars and didn't keep them long. I don't know where he found this one--it was gun metal gray green and we were a little embarrassed to be driving a "tank."
Wonder what it is worth today if it's still on all fours?
Now the lefties love Wal-Mart
So Huff and Puff and Color of Change are now singing the praises of America's corporate giants. Hmmm. Smells fishy, doesn't it. A Leftist Government controlling and threatening businesses' bottom line; I wonder what that's called--certainly not capitalism, a representative system of government, or the USA we had before January 20, 2009? Color of Change alumni are now in the administration. To use a favorite administration phrase, they are about to wee-wee in their pants, they are so worked up. Obama is called a racist, which is what someone is who makes snap judgements based on race (as in the policegate incident) something 80% of the citizens are called every day, and all of a sudden free speech is out the window. You can't possibly notice Obama's leftist politics--it just has to be his genetic make-up--not that he's turning the USA into a banana republic.
Time to write those lily livered corporate CEOs and assure them that investors and shoppers watch Glenn Beck, too, not just left wing non-profits and Media-Muck-up. Don't try e-mailing them; you'll just waste time being shuffled around their websites.
Time to write those lily livered corporate CEOs and assure them that investors and shoppers watch Glenn Beck, too, not just left wing non-profits and Media-Muck-up. Don't try e-mailing them; you'll just waste time being shuffled around their websites.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Small, medium, big
I have no problem telling a Chihuahua from a Jack Russell from a Dachshund, or an Arabian from a Thoroughbred from a Percheron, or a Jersey from a Guernsey from a Holstein, but once I get beyond robins and blue jays, I'm not much good identifying birds. I've been going on these bird watch/walks this summer, and you should hear these people rattle off the names! I see a bunch of gulls, or I think they are gulls. "There goes an adolescent boney," or "look at that herring gull, see the head on that ring bill?" One lady from Akron told us about thousands of purple martins "staging" in Akron before they fly off to Brazil. Then there are the terns, cormorants, ospreys and herons. I just didn't grow up around shore birds. Some of the early a.m. watchers have been doing this 20-30 years! They've identified hundreds--it's like a game with them. And like any hobby, they all say they meet the nicest people.
Boneparte gull (small)
Ring bill gull (medium)
Herring gull (big)
Boneparte gull (small)
Ring bill gull (medium)
Herring gull (big)
Lakeside Cottage Architecture, pt. 10
Early 20th century garages
It’s rare that I can’t find a topic on the internet by googling a few sets of words, but I think I’ve found one: the architectural history of the American garage. The garage as a piece of America's towns and cities is now about 100 years old--and the earliest are disappearing--except here, where time occasionally stands still or slows down. American Garage Magazine (online) reports the Robie House (Frank Lloyd Wright) was one of the earliest to have a garage in 1906.
Lakeside is a good petri dish for this research. As Midwestern towns go, Lakeside isn’t very old, having been founded in 1873 as a summer campground then growing into a resort with a few permanent residents. For about the first 50 years of its existence, visitors to the Christian campground arrived either by boat, or by rail from Sandusky or Toledo. When a bridge was made across the bay, people began coming by automobile in the 1920s. Rail passenger service ended in 1930 due to drastic losses in passenger ticket sales.
I lived in two small Illinois towns in the 1940s and 1950s and many garages had previously been small carriage houses or barns. Lakesiders didn’t arrive by carriage and left their horses at home so few needed a stable, although some of the local permanent residents probably had horses. Lakeside also didn't have alleys, like the cities and small towns of Ohio where garages for houses were accessible.
Although I'm not sure why summer residents wanted garages, I'm guessing the automobile in the 20s wasn't as durable as today. In the 1920s, garages were first located some distance from the house there being some fear of the gasoline engine. I'm calling the first group six lights over three panels for the door style.
These little cuties with different roof styles both have six panes over three panels in doors that swing forward. The one on the left seems to have the original siding. Both are quite a distance from the street.
This is an early "attached" garage--same door style, but added to the kitchen lean to which had been added to the basic cottage. Early cottages didn't have kitchens or bathrooms.
Same door style, but much bigger building. Also, no visible drive-way which is the case for many garages in Lakeside which haven't seen a car in years.
It's hard to find original siding in Lakeside--it's been wrapped in vinyl siding, but here's a home and garage, 6 over 3, both with original siding.
It’s rare that I can’t find a topic on the internet by googling a few sets of words, but I think I’ve found one: the architectural history of the American garage. The garage as a piece of America's towns and cities is now about 100 years old--and the earliest are disappearing--except here, where time occasionally stands still or slows down. American Garage Magazine (online) reports the Robie House (Frank Lloyd Wright) was one of the earliest to have a garage in 1906.
Lakeside is a good petri dish for this research. As Midwestern towns go, Lakeside isn’t very old, having been founded in 1873 as a summer campground then growing into a resort with a few permanent residents. For about the first 50 years of its existence, visitors to the Christian campground arrived either by boat, or by rail from Sandusky or Toledo. When a bridge was made across the bay, people began coming by automobile in the 1920s. Rail passenger service ended in 1930 due to drastic losses in passenger ticket sales.
I lived in two small Illinois towns in the 1940s and 1950s and many garages had previously been small carriage houses or barns. Lakesiders didn’t arrive by carriage and left their horses at home so few needed a stable, although some of the local permanent residents probably had horses. Lakeside also didn't have alleys, like the cities and small towns of Ohio where garages for houses were accessible.
Although I'm not sure why summer residents wanted garages, I'm guessing the automobile in the 20s wasn't as durable as today. In the 1920s, garages were first located some distance from the house there being some fear of the gasoline engine. I'm calling the first group six lights over three panels for the door style.
These little cuties with different roof styles both have six panes over three panels in doors that swing forward. The one on the left seems to have the original siding. Both are quite a distance from the street.
This is an early "attached" garage--same door style, but added to the kitchen lean to which had been added to the basic cottage. Early cottages didn't have kitchens or bathrooms.
Same door style, but much bigger building. Also, no visible drive-way which is the case for many garages in Lakeside which haven't seen a car in years.
It's hard to find original siding in Lakeside--it's been wrapped in vinyl siding, but here's a home and garage, 6 over 3, both with original siding.
No lobbyist left behind
"The Waxman-Markey climate change bill, a 1,427-page special-interest wish list, was put together in such a rush that the allowance permit numbers don’t add up. If you add the percentage of emissions allowances to various special interests in the years 2016 and 2017 and you get a value greater than one hundred percent. That’s right—the bill allocates nearly a billion dollars worth of allowances over and above the emissions “cap” set for those respective years.
Thousands of lobbyists worked on this bill to secure a piece of the allowance pie. These special interests range from the natural gas industry to the auto industry. Even tropical rainforests made the list. Electric utilities were the big winners, receiving 43.75 percent of the allowances in 2012 and 2013. Petroleum refiners didn’t fare as well, receiving only 2.25 percent of the emissions allowances from 2014-2026. Lobbyists brought their A-game to shape this bill and Members caved into their demands, all but guaranteeing this bill will do nothing for the environment. And it comes at the expense of the ratepayer and the taxpayer.
With over 12,500 registered lobbyists in Washington, it’s no surprise that this bill turned into a feeding frenzy that was rushed through in the middle of the night and promises more than it can actually hand out. Waxman-Markey is nothing more than a huge energy tax and a handout for special interests." The Foundry
Thousands of lobbyists worked on this bill to secure a piece of the allowance pie. These special interests range from the natural gas industry to the auto industry. Even tropical rainforests made the list. Electric utilities were the big winners, receiving 43.75 percent of the allowances in 2012 and 2013. Petroleum refiners didn’t fare as well, receiving only 2.25 percent of the emissions allowances from 2014-2026. Lobbyists brought their A-game to shape this bill and Members caved into their demands, all but guaranteeing this bill will do nothing for the environment. And it comes at the expense of the ratepayer and the taxpayer.
With over 12,500 registered lobbyists in Washington, it’s no surprise that this bill turned into a feeding frenzy that was rushed through in the middle of the night and promises more than it can actually hand out. Waxman-Markey is nothing more than a huge energy tax and a handout for special interests." The Foundry
Sword of the Spirit, John and Mary Brown
At Hoover Auditorium last night we were treated to an excellent two person play based on the life and letters of John and Mary Brown by Greg Artzner and Terry Leonino (6th Annual Civil War Week at Lakeside). The Browns lived in Hudson, Ohio, as well as North Elba, NY, site of the Brown family cemetery, where Mary said it's winter 6 months and cold the rest of the year. She is buried in Saratoga, California where she went to live after John's death. There were also family ties to Put-in-Bay and Decorah, Iowa, as well as other sites because John Brown was a passionate abolitionist, fanatical Christian and a not-so-great provider who moved frequently, uprooting his family when they weren't burying their children.
Mary Brown sounded a bit familiar to me, so when I got home I browsed my little shelf of cottage books, many of which are about northern Ohio or the lake, and found "Ohio scenes and citizens" by Grace Goulder, a very popular Cleveland writer who died in 1984 at 91. Mine is an orange paperback in excellent condition, Landfall Press, 1973, reprinted from the 1950 World Publishing Co. The chapter on John Brown's wives is probably the only one I'd read in this collection of articles that originally appeared in the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Her work on Dianthe and Mary Brown is just a masterpiece of research, with material taken from letters diaries, interviews with relatives, and trips to archives, cemeteries and libraries. I didn't see anything that was in conflict with last night's presentation, although Mr. Artzner commented after the play that within the past decade there have been many new books on John Brown. Maybe so, but if you want to know anything about his wives, check out Grace Goulder. Really terrific.
Mary Brown sounded a bit familiar to me, so when I got home I browsed my little shelf of cottage books, many of which are about northern Ohio or the lake, and found "Ohio scenes and citizens" by Grace Goulder, a very popular Cleveland writer who died in 1984 at 91. Mine is an orange paperback in excellent condition, Landfall Press, 1973, reprinted from the 1950 World Publishing Co. The chapter on John Brown's wives is probably the only one I'd read in this collection of articles that originally appeared in the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Her work on Dianthe and Mary Brown is just a masterpiece of research, with material taken from letters diaries, interviews with relatives, and trips to archives, cemeteries and libraries. I didn't see anything that was in conflict with last night's presentation, although Mr. Artzner commented after the play that within the past decade there have been many new books on John Brown. Maybe so, but if you want to know anything about his wives, check out Grace Goulder. Really terrific.
The Slacker Mandate
When my children were 18, they launched themselves into the everyday blue and pink collar work world, anxious to prove themselves and get away from Mom and Dad. And health insurance coverage, as I discovered. I don't know what the rules are today, but in 1987 unless your child was being supported by you and attending college, they were no longer on the family dole for insurance. I think college students could stay on a policy until age 23. No amount of cajoling or bribery could get them to enroll at any of our wonderful colleges or state university. So we did what any intelligent, frugal parent would do, we eventually purchased "temporary" catastrophic health insurance for them in their own names. One of the reasons young adults don't sign on for company health benefits is they have immature brains--it's called the "nothing can happen to me" syndrome. And actuarially, they are among the healthiest segment of the population. The huge risk, in my mind, was auto accidents (young adults are also big risk takers), and they both had one before age 20. Obama wants you to assume that risk for everyone's primarily healthy young adult--it's called the "Slacker Mandate." This raises the cost for everyone to insure a very tiny group--the irresponsible, but healthy young adults who won't pony up the cost of a pizza and beer for their company co-pay. SCHIP, the government insurance plan for families earning less than $83,000 for a family of 4*, already considers a 28 year old of lower income parents a "child."
CAHI: "As one of his "Health Insurance Consumer Protections," President Obama intends to extend a family-policy's coverage to young adults up to 26 years old.
He's following a state trend. The Council for Affordable Health Insurance tracks all state health insurance mandates -- there are currently 2,133 state mandates nationwide -- and more and more states are mandating health insurers cover young adults. Some states are even pushing the age limit up to 30. It's often called the "slacker mandate" because these adults are still on their family's policy."
So you see, we have Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP, and all these mandates from the various levels of government requiring coverage of the oddies and endies and non-disease diseases and conditions. If you can't get the elephant into the living room through the front door, dismantle the entire back of the house and push him in that way. But you better have a big pooper scooper on hand.
*Figure varies by state. It can be as high as $120,000 for a family of 8, not poverty in my book. Congress created the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) in 1997 to provide public health insurance for families who could not afford private coverage yet earned too much to qualify for Medicaid. SCHIP gave states flexibility to set income eligibility. Some states exceed 250% Federal Poverty Level while others have proposed limits up to 400%.
Watching you watching me
The feral calico that hangs around here catching small rodents and squashing the lilies, eats at all the neighbors, but she knows a cat when she sees one. Ours does not. Tuesday evening near dusk I found her sitting in our yard watching our very puzzled and concerned kitty whose eyes are glowing in the flash from safety inside the porch.
Then on Wednesday morning when I was out and about researching and photographing my next architectural project (early 20th century garages), I came across these kitties congregating for breakfast at another neighbors. This is a different group than I usually see nearer the lake.
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