If I am low-income, will Washington State medical assistance pay for my abortion?.
Yes, as long as you are eligible for Medicaid coverage. Washington State Medicaid pays for abortions for women who are also eligible to receive Medicaid maternity care services. Women under 18 are covered in the same way as adult women.
Washington’s Basic Health Plan (BHP) is run by the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) and is available to low-income residents of Washington State. BHP also covers abortion services.
Does health insurance cover abortion?
Most health insurance plans cover abortions. Look at your insurance policy or call your insurance company to determine whether abortion services are covered by your insurance company. Your health care provider can also call ahead to find out about your coverage and what percentage of the fee your insurance will cover.
Can I get free birth control?
Most low-income women of any age can sign up for a year of free birth control under our state’s Take Charge program. To apply go to https://fortress.wa.gov/dshs/maatakecharge/Login.aspx or call 1-800-770-4334. Recent changes to federal law have made it harder for some immigrant women to get free birth control under this program. For more information about public benefits available to immigrants in Washington State, go to www.washingtonlawhelp.org.
Some medical clinics and services provide women with free birth control depending on their income. Medicaid also pays for certain birth control for eligible women.
What is ―emergency contraception‖ (EC) or the ―morning-after pill‖?
The “morning-after pill” is the common name for emergency contraception. We will call it EC in this memo. It is also known by its brand name, Plan B®. EC is birth control pills taken after sex to prevent a pregnancy. It works best when taken within 72 hours (three days) of sex, but may prevent pregnancy up to 120 hours (five days) after sex. EC is NOT an abortion: it prevents a pregnancy from happening at all, and does not harm an existing pregnancy
Friday, February 17, 2012
You are already paying for someone's abortion
The following comes from the state of Washington, but other states have similar documents.
Have you ever wondered about Agenda 21?
I've been watching and listening and wading through obfuscating language on "sustainability" for about five years. It's not conservation, or saving Lake Erie, or saving some bird species. It's a whole lot bigger than what God commanded Adam to do in Genesis, and it's not one party either, and Obama didn't invent it. He was just a kid when it got rolling, which this guy dates to 1987, but I date to Earth Day, 1970. It's pantheistic, atheistic, and openingly anti-capitalist. It's just a new road to statism, then globalism.
According to its authors, the objective of sustainable development is to integrate economic, social and environmental policies in order to achieve reduced consumption, social equity, and the preservation and restoration of biodiversity. Sustainablists insist that every societal decision be based on environmental impact, focusing on three components; global land use, global education, and global population control and reduction.
Smart Growth, Wildlands Project, Resilient Cities, Regional Visioning Projects, STAR Sustainable Communities, Green jobs, Green Building Codes, “Going Green,” Alternative Energy, Local Visioning, facilitators, regional planning, historic preservation, conservation easements, development rights, sustainable farming, comprehensive planning, growth management, consensus.
Who is behind it?
ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability (formally, International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives). Communities pay ICLEI dues to provide “local” community plans, software, training, etc. Addition groups include American Planning Council, The Renaissance Planning Group, International City/ County Management Group, aided by US Mayors Conference, National Governors Association, National League of Cities, National Association of County Administrators and many more private organizations and official government agencies. Foundation and government grants drive the process.
Tom DeWeese
Moroccan, illegal immigrant, arrested for attempted suicide bombing
"Amine el-Khalifi, 29, was picked up while carrying an inoperable gun and a fake suicide vest provided to him by undercover FBI agents posing as al-Qaeda associates, U.S. officials said. They said he entered the United States when he was 16 and was living as an illegal immigrant in Arlington, Va., having reportedly overstayed his visitor’s visa for years. . .
Before heading for the Capitol, Khalifi prayed Friday at the Dar al-Hijrah Mosque in Northern Virginia, but he was not a regular worshiper at the mosque, according to Johari Abdul-Malik, the prayer leader at Dar al-Hijrah. . .
The man thought he was being assisted by members of the al-Qaeda terrorist network, but they were really undercover FBI agents, officials said."
Good job, whoever the undercover agents were.
Read story here in WaPo.
el-Khalifi probably got free lunch at school when he was a teen. You don't need to be a citizen, and no one asks questions.
Before heading for the Capitol, Khalifi prayed Friday at the Dar al-Hijrah Mosque in Northern Virginia, but he was not a regular worshiper at the mosque, according to Johari Abdul-Malik, the prayer leader at Dar al-Hijrah. . .
The man thought he was being assisted by members of the al-Qaeda terrorist network, but they were really undercover FBI agents, officials said."
Good job, whoever the undercover agents were.
Read story here in WaPo.
el-Khalifi probably got free lunch at school when he was a teen. You don't need to be a citizen, and no one asks questions.
You'd have to be really desperate
to choose reduced price meals or free meals for your children at school. Take a look at these forms. Here. and Here. and Here. A reduced price meal is possible for an income of $55,482 for a family of 6 (185% of Federal poverty level). That would be well above median income ($49,445). For free meals it is 130% of the Federal poverty level, or about $39,000. See USA Today.
Other tid-bits from different school districts:
Other tid-bits from different school districts:
MAY I APPLY IF SOMEONE IN MY HOUSEHOLD IS NOT A U.S. CITIZEN? Yes. You or your child(ren) do not have to be U.S. citizens to qualify for free or reduced price meals.
Breakfast is available at Campbell High School and costs $1.50. Lunch costs $1.75 at Griffin Memorial School and $2.00 at both Litchfield Middle School and Campbell High School. Your children may qualify for free meals or for reduced price meals. Reduced price is $.30 for breakfast and $.40 for lunch.
CAN HOMELESS, RUNAWAY, AND MIGRANT CHILDREN GET FREE MEALS? Yes, children who meet the definition of homeless, runaway, or migrant qualify for free meals. If you haven’t been told your children will get free meals, please call or e-mail xxxxxxxxxx, Director of Food Services, to see if they qualify.
Foods and beverages on campus (including vending, concessions, a la carte, student stores, parties, and fundraising) during the school day are consistent with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and comply with legislative requirements. [Which would probably cover sack lunches which were recently in the news.]
Q: What happens if a family does not submit a Meal Benefits Application?
A: Children in the household must pay full price for breakfast and lunch.
Q: If I move to Milwaukee Public Schools from another school district where my children received free or reduced meal benefits, do I have to reapply here to continue to receive benefits?
A: Yes! If you move to MPS from another school district, you must complete a new application. Meal eligibility status does not transfer to MPS. If your children transfer from one school to another within MPS, their status would remain the same.
Obama's hostility toward religion
In case there was any doubt about the Obama administration's hostility toward religious groups and institutions, it has now redefined the loan forgiveness program to exclude religious (501c3) organizations. I didn't approve of that program because if you borrowed it, you should return it, but excluding these groups as non-qualifying, really shows his true colors. Anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-religion. Watch as they start using "freedom of worship" instead of "freedom of religion." This rules were changed (or at least announced) after the Catholics began to push back. SMACK DOWN!
Read the story here.
"In 2007, Congress created the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program to encourage individuals to enter and continue to work full time in public service jobs. Under this program, you may qualify for forgiveness of the remaining balance due on your eligible federal student loans aft er you have made 120 payments on those loans under certain repayment plans while employed full time by certain
public service employers. Since you must make 120 monthly payments on your eligible federal student loans after October 1, 2007 before you qualify for the loan forgiveness, the first cancellations of loan balances will not be granted until October 2017."
All the evidence shows that "public servants" earn more than employees in the private sector. Why should they be getting any special deal on paying back the tax payer?
Read the story here.
"In 2007, Congress created the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program to encourage individuals to enter and continue to work full time in public service jobs. Under this program, you may qualify for forgiveness of the remaining balance due on your eligible federal student loans aft er you have made 120 payments on those loans under certain repayment plans while employed full time by certain
public service employers. Since you must make 120 monthly payments on your eligible federal student loans after October 1, 2007 before you qualify for the loan forgiveness, the first cancellations of loan balances will not be granted until October 2017."
All the evidence shows that "public servants" earn more than employees in the private sector. Why should they be getting any special deal on paying back the tax payer?
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Homeless numbers, counting them
"Each year, approximately one percent of the U.S. population, some 2-3 million individuals, experiences a night of homelessness that puts them in contact with a homeless assistance provider, and at least 800,000 people are homeless in the United States on any given night." U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Strategic Action Plan on Homelessness
Let that sink in. One percent. One night. Any given night. The Homeless Assistance Act was enacted in 1987 under Reagan, and it had its roots in a Task Force formed in 1983. The U.S. HHS put a plan in place in 2003 which began with a study in 2001 between HHS and HUD to end homelessness, and revised it in 2007. I've looked through some of the information including The Federal Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness, and the results look really good. But it appears the Obama Administration sort of dropped the ball. Although he did issue his own plan. The plan sets no specific goals. Uses words like "increase," "improve," and "retool," which are not measurable, and a sink hole for money. There has been a federal agency (now called United States Interagency Council on Homelessness) tasked with ending homelessness for 25 years. It meets and issues newsletters, annual reports and strategic plans. But homelessness has not ended.
Let that sink in. One percent. One night. Any given night. The Homeless Assistance Act was enacted in 1987 under Reagan, and it had its roots in a Task Force formed in 1983. The U.S. HHS put a plan in place in 2003 which began with a study in 2001 between HHS and HUD to end homelessness, and revised it in 2007. I've looked through some of the information including The Federal Collaborative Initiative to Help End Chronic Homelessness, and the results look really good. But it appears the Obama Administration sort of dropped the ball. Although he did issue his own plan. The plan sets no specific goals. Uses words like "increase," "improve," and "retool," which are not measurable, and a sink hole for money. There has been a federal agency (now called United States Interagency Council on Homelessness) tasked with ending homelessness for 25 years. It meets and issues newsletters, annual reports and strategic plans. But homelessness has not ended.
Diversity and Poverty are just so Yesterday
Count 'em; count the black male presidents.
Now it's climate change, sustainability, climate neutrality, Al Gore's global warming (hasn't that been completely discredited), Earth summits, Earth Day, Kyoto, Silent Spring (which launched the deaths of millions of African children), climate science, droughts, wind storms, floods (apparently new stuff), global talks and conferences (with lots of jet travel).
"Colleges and universities must exercise leadership in their communities and throughout society by modeling ways to eliminate global warming emissions, and by providing the knowledge and the educated graduates to achieve climate neutrality. We hope you will join us in supporting the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment."
Now it's climate change, sustainability, climate neutrality, Al Gore's global warming (hasn't that been completely discredited), Earth summits, Earth Day, Kyoto, Silent Spring (which launched the deaths of millions of African children), climate science, droughts, wind storms, floods (apparently new stuff), global talks and conferences (with lots of jet travel).
Which does a better job for the poor, free markets or socialism? Milton Friedman
There is no better system for eliminating poverty than the free enterprise system. Real poverty in this country is a result of bad government failures. Black teens? Lousy government schooling, minimum wage as an anti-Negro law (1978 before race terms were changed), government welfare machine which has produced poor people--encourages families to break up. Our standard of poverty is above the average income of all the people in the USSR--that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t work on it, but we need to recognize the source and problem.
Architect fired by Columbus Board of Education
There's a story in the Columbus Dispatch today about the firing of an architect on a $26 million middle school renovation by the Columbus Board of Education. First the public was told there were design problems with the historic details, now that the architect has been fired. I always note articles about architects since my husband is one, and has been an associate, a partner, and a sole practitioner with his own firm since 1994. The minute I read the architect's name, I guessed the problem was affirmative action. If you are to get state or local government jobs, you have to have a female or minority firm partner with you. Apparently, the real reason he was fired had originally been covered up, so now the story is appearing. And you have to work your way almost to the end before you find out, not why he was fired, but why he was hired.
Choosing an architect by the color of his skin or ethnicity for a building that has to withstand earth tremors, hurricanes, tornadoes, wild temperature fluctuations, snow loads, all environmental rules for health and safety, plus the complexity of renovation of a building on the historic register, is not a safe plan for the children or the staff of that school. Either he/she is qualified to do a job or he isn't. Don't put safety and design at risk to meet social goals.
Choosing a president by the color of his skin is even more dangerous--but for the whole nation, not just Columbus school children.
"Asked why Udeagbala's company was leading a project it wasn't qualified to complete it, Acock [architect on the oversight committee that selected him] said after the meeting that it was partly because of the district's desire to help a local black architect. . . The district's "local economically disadvantaged enterprise" program, known as LEDE, seeks to help socially and economically disadvantaged people participate in district contracts, "including African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, women and others," the policy says. Because of federal case law, the program sets only race- and gender-neutral goals for participation."What a crock of BS! It wasn't "partly" the reason, it was the reason. You can't get a government job in the building industry if you don't partner with a minority firm, and the minority firms in turn in order to get work, partner with more experienced, non-minority firms. When I was the veterinary medicine librarian at OSU I went outside the university maintenance office (civil service) to hire a private firm painter for my library, but the bidder had to have a minority partner who did the work. He was awful, couldn't get the paint color right, and the partnering firm eventually sent in a replacement. In this case reported in the Dispatch, from the names Udeagbala partnered with, at least 2 other firms (both minority) backed out after finding out he wasn't qualified. This program of "affirmative action" on government jobs has actually hurt minorities and women. He might have become a good architect if he'd stayed in the trenches fighting the battles daily until he was ready and said no to the government.
Choosing an architect by the color of his skin or ethnicity for a building that has to withstand earth tremors, hurricanes, tornadoes, wild temperature fluctuations, snow loads, all environmental rules for health and safety, plus the complexity of renovation of a building on the historic register, is not a safe plan for the children or the staff of that school. Either he/she is qualified to do a job or he isn't. Don't put safety and design at risk to meet social goals.
Choosing a president by the color of his skin is even more dangerous--but for the whole nation, not just Columbus school children.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Uncommon knowledge--Jonah Goldberg
Ideology is not a bad thing, but conservatives realize human nature is flawed. We don’t believe we can create a heaven on earth, for instance. Cynicism allows us to focus on the good enough, not the perfect. The leftists are utopians--the mission is never accomplished, as they try to climb to perfection. Plus they think government can do this, which is why they are more dogmatic than conservatives. They don't realize that religions are an island of separateness from them; they are always the aggressor, always getting into all the nooks and crannies of society. Among Democrats, 52 percent say they “seldom” or “never” attend religious services; among Republicans, 61 percent go to church or synagogue once a month or more. Goldberg is thrilled that Barbra Streisand won't read his column in LA Times--she thinks diversity just means people who agree with her. Liberalism is the antithesis of diversity.
Black History--Thank you, Senator Dirksen
During his time in both the House and the Senate, Everett Dirksen had built a solid record in support of civil rights, having introduced a bill for a civil rights commission in the House in 1953 and worked for the 1960 civil rights bill in the Senate. Before that he had promoted antipoll tax bills (Democrats put those in place) and antilynching legislation. To Dirksen, civil rights represented an important moral issue, even though he seldom received the political support of Chicago's black voters.
Forty percent of the House Democrats VOTED AGAINST the Civil Rights Act of 1964, while eighty percent of Republicans SUPPORTED it. Republican support in the Senate was even higher. Similar trends occurred with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which was supported by 82% of House Republicans and 94% of Senate Republicans. The same Democrat standard bearers took their normal racists stances, this time with Senator Fulbright leading the opposition effort.
It took the hard work of Republican Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen and Republican Whip Thomas Kuchel to pass the Civil Rights Act (Dirksen was presented a civil rights accomplishment award for the year by the head of the NAACP in recognition of his efforts). Upon breaking the Democrat filibuster of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Republican Dirksen took to the Senate floor and exclaimed "The time has come for equality of opportunity in sharing in government, in education, and in employment. It will not be stayed or denied. It is here!" (Full text of speech). Sadly, Democrats and revisionist historians have all but forgotten (and intentionally so) that it was Republican Dirksen, not the divided Democrats, who made the Civil Rights Act a reality. Dirksen also broke the Democrat filibuster of the 1957 Civil Rights Act that was signed by Republican President Eisenhower. (Link)
Forty percent of the House Democrats VOTED AGAINST the Civil Rights Act of 1964, while eighty percent of Republicans SUPPORTED it. Republican support in the Senate was even higher. Similar trends occurred with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which was supported by 82% of House Republicans and 94% of Senate Republicans. The same Democrat standard bearers took their normal racists stances, this time with Senator Fulbright leading the opposition effort.
It took the hard work of Republican Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen and Republican Whip Thomas Kuchel to pass the Civil Rights Act (Dirksen was presented a civil rights accomplishment award for the year by the head of the NAACP in recognition of his efforts). Upon breaking the Democrat filibuster of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Republican Dirksen took to the Senate floor and exclaimed "The time has come for equality of opportunity in sharing in government, in education, and in employment. It will not be stayed or denied. It is here!" (Full text of speech). Sadly, Democrats and revisionist historians have all but forgotten (and intentionally so) that it was Republican Dirksen, not the divided Democrats, who made the Civil Rights Act a reality. Dirksen also broke the Democrat filibuster of the 1957 Civil Rights Act that was signed by Republican President Eisenhower. (Link)
Sebilius--Who does she think she is?
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, daughter of an Ohio Democratic Governor, and a former Democratic Governor herself, testified today before the Finance Committee hearing on Capitol Hill (February 15, 2012). The Committee is hearing testimony from Secretary Sebelius on President Obama's FY2013 budget request for the Department of Health and Human Services.
Boy! Talk about top down control.
1) She didn’t consult with the Justice Department about the legality of the mandate.
2) She didn’t consult with Catholic bishops before the Obama administration announced a change in its contraceptive coverage largely meant to appease the bishops.
3) She “assumed” American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood were consulted, but she didn’t know.
4) She didn’t reply to the 28 members of Congress who contacted her last summer and fall about the contraceptive (aka reproductive health) mandate.
Who does this woman serve? President Obama. Not us. Not the American people.
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2012/02/15/sebelius-didnt-consult-bishops-on-contraception-deal/
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/291194/what-we-learned-today-senate-about-hhs-mandate-kathryn-jean-lopez
Boy! Talk about top down control.
1) She didn’t consult with the Justice Department about the legality of the mandate.
2) She didn’t consult with Catholic bishops before the Obama administration announced a change in its contraceptive coverage largely meant to appease the bishops.
3) She “assumed” American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood were consulted, but she didn’t know.
4) She didn’t reply to the 28 members of Congress who contacted her last summer and fall about the contraceptive (aka reproductive health) mandate.
Who does this woman serve? President Obama. Not us. Not the American people.
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2012/02/15/sebelius-didnt-consult-bishops-on-contraception-deal/
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/291194/what-we-learned-today-senate-about-hhs-mandate-kathryn-jean-lopez
Balancing the Economic Benefits with the Environmental Impacts of Shale Energy Development
"A vast black shale formation known as the Marcellus Shale runs from Ohio and Pennsylvania into southern and eastern New York. Trapped inside that shale is a tremendous amount of natural gas, anywhere from 168 trillion to 516 trillion cubic feet. To put this number in perspective, the top estimates would make the Marcellus Shale the second largest gas source in the entire world, behind only the South Pars field in Qatar and Iran." Henrietta Post
Today there is a “webinar” at OSU "Balancing the Economic Benefits with the Environmental Impacts of Shale Energy Development" presented by Tim Considine, School of Energy Resources, University of Wyoming. The webinar is free. http://changingclimate.osu.edu/webinars/ Figuring this might be one more presentation on how energy policies are ruining the environment (China and Russia are eating us for lunch by selling their energy), I was pleasantly surprised to find out Considine had done a presentation for Manhattan Institute and organization whose publications I trust.
Fracturing (fracking) is a big issue in Ohio—not sure about other states--but obviously it is in New York and Pennsylvania. Read what Considine has to say to New Yorkers based on his Pennsylvania experience and research. Probably similar for Ohio except the tax information and value added jobs information will be different and specific to Ohio. Very well documented with references at the end, plus hot links on the right hand side for more accessible, understandable material for the layperson. The charts on industry sectors are particularly interesting.
http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/eper_09.htm
“The extraction, processing, and transportation of natural gas all affect the environment. However, expansion of the supply of natural gas permits the displacement of more polluting forms of energy. Estimating the net environmental impacts, therefore, requires comparing the upstream negative environmental externalities associated with gas development with the downstream positive externalities created by switching to natural gas.”
Today there is a “webinar” at OSU "Balancing the Economic Benefits with the Environmental Impacts of Shale Energy Development" presented by Tim Considine, School of Energy Resources, University of Wyoming. The webinar is free. http://changingclimate.osu.edu/webinars/ Figuring this might be one more presentation on how energy policies are ruining the environment (China and Russia are eating us for lunch by selling their energy), I was pleasantly surprised to find out Considine had done a presentation for Manhattan Institute and organization whose publications I trust.
Fracturing (fracking) is a big issue in Ohio—not sure about other states--but obviously it is in New York and Pennsylvania. Read what Considine has to say to New Yorkers based on his Pennsylvania experience and research. Probably similar for Ohio except the tax information and value added jobs information will be different and specific to Ohio. Very well documented with references at the end, plus hot links on the right hand side for more accessible, understandable material for the layperson. The charts on industry sectors are particularly interesting.
http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/eper_09.htm
“The extraction, processing, and transportation of natural gas all affect the environment. However, expansion of the supply of natural gas permits the displacement of more polluting forms of energy. Estimating the net environmental impacts, therefore, requires comparing the upstream negative environmental externalities associated with gas development with the downstream positive externalities created by switching to natural gas.”
This study analyzes the economic and environmental impacts of shale gas drilling in New York and finds the net economic benefits to be significantly positive. Specifically:
Our findings suggest that the current shale gas drilling moratorium imposes a significant and needless burden on the New York State economy. In short, the economic benefits of developing shale gas resources in New York State are enormous and could be growing, while the environmental costs of doing so are small and could be diminishing if the moratorium is lifted and if proper policies are put into place.
- An end to the moratorium would spur over $11.4 billion in economic output.
- Some 15,000 to 18,000 jobs could be created in the Southern Tier and Western New York, regions which lost a combined 48,000 payroll jobs between 2000 and 2010.*
- Another 75,000 to 90,000 jobs could be created if the area of exploration and drilling were expanded to include the Utica shale and southeastern New York, including the New York City watershed. (This assumes a regulatory regime that protects the water supply but permits drilling to continue.)
- Localities and the state stand to reap $1.4 billion in tax revenues if the moratorium is allowed to expire.
National Pancake Day!
Looking for the yummiest way to support Pregnancy Decision Health Center? Join us at any of the local IHOP Restaurants on National Pancake Day, February 28th! From 7 am - 10 pm you can receive a free short stack of pancakes and make a donation to PDHC at the same time! Locations include:
5500 Renner Rd
HIlliard, Ohio 43228
2413 Taylor Square Dr
Reynoldsburg, Ohio 43068
1585 River Valley Circle North
Lancaster, Ohio 43130
The local PDHC saved 37 lives in January! How many did the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America) save? Its health insurance policy covers abortion for any reason, even gender selection, and its member churches are required to carry that anti-life insurance for employees.
According to a PDHC call for prayer, a 14 year old has had an ultrasound. She is 18 weeks pregnant and is being pressured by her mother to have an abortion even though she does not want to do this. She said her abortion is scheduled for this Monday or Tuesday. Wonder who scheduled it and where? Do you suppose Planned Parenthood helped? Is this the kind of "choice" the pro-abortion people talk about?
5500 Renner Rd
HIlliard, Ohio 43228
2413 Taylor Square Dr
Reynoldsburg, Ohio 43068
1585 River Valley Circle North
Lancaster, Ohio 43130
The local PDHC saved 37 lives in January! How many did the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America) save? Its health insurance policy covers abortion for any reason, even gender selection, and its member churches are required to carry that anti-life insurance for employees.
According to a PDHC call for prayer, a 14 year old has had an ultrasound. She is 18 weeks pregnant and is being pressured by her mother to have an abortion even though she does not want to do this. She said her abortion is scheduled for this Monday or Tuesday. Wonder who scheduled it and where? Do you suppose Planned Parenthood helped? Is this the kind of "choice" the pro-abortion people talk about?
Acronyms, medical
The Center for Faculty Advancement, Mentoring and Engagement (FAME) invites you to participate in a focus group to help inform the Center on creating, developing and harnessing opportunities for faculty development.
Wexner Medical Center at The Ohio State University
Wexner Medical Center at The Ohio State University
High risk sexual behavior
What does the Bible consider high risk sexual behavior?
(10 commandments, OT; Hebrews, NT)
1) Any sexual relations outside the marriage bed (man and woman).
What does the government consider high risk sexual behavior?
(CDC)
1) Men who have sex with men
2) Women who have sex with men who also have sex with men
3) 5 or more sexual partners in the last 12 months
4) Oral or anal sex with multiple sex partners in the last 12 months
5) Any sex where money, drugs or something of value is exchanged
6) Sex with a person who injects drugs
7) Sex with a person who has HIV
8) Sex with a person who has been treated for other STDs in last 12 months
Solution seems pretty simple, doesn't it?
(10 commandments, OT; Hebrews, NT)
1) Any sexual relations outside the marriage bed (man and woman).
What does the government consider high risk sexual behavior?
(CDC)
1) Men who have sex with men
2) Women who have sex with men who also have sex with men
3) 5 or more sexual partners in the last 12 months
4) Oral or anal sex with multiple sex partners in the last 12 months
5) Any sex where money, drugs or something of value is exchanged
6) Sex with a person who injects drugs
7) Sex with a person who has HIV
8) Sex with a person who has been treated for other STDs in last 12 months
Solution seems pretty simple, doesn't it?
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Daniel Hannon at CPAC
This speaker makes Obama look like a beginner.
If you want to know how great your Constitution is, compare it with the EU. Ours (EU) was rejected by the people, and then imposed anyway. "We still hold these truths. . ." If you feel really discouraged about the state of our government--listen to this guy!
Interviewed by Glenn Beck: Greece and EU are going over the cliff, and in the rear view mirror, comes the U.S. overtaking them. “The job of government is to redistribute money.”
Andrew Wilkow, talk show host
Tonight Glenn Beck interviewed Andrew Wilkow, who since 2002 has had a conservative radio talk show, first on WABC then WGY, then in 2006 moved to Sirius. He renamed his show “The Wilkow Majority” and it was added to XM America Right 166 after Sirius and XM became one company in January of 2009. On the Beck show he had interesting things to say about Albany, NY, Progressives, the group celebrating the convicted cop killer (Obama's friends the Ayers raised his child), leftists defending child sex offenders, and the Occupy groups. He says Albany, NY "is a cess pool controlled by unions." Check his web site.
You can listen on MP3 "free five" for a taste of the show. He has an impressive guest list, although most seem more of interest to New Yorkers.
You can listen on MP3 "free five" for a taste of the show. He has an impressive guest list, although most seem more of interest to New Yorkers.
Do you read the New York Times?
I used to. But the news stories are so biased and full of opinion, I just gave up. I prefer some facts, so I can make my own opinion. This opinion of NYT opinion page I agree with, but its also in the news coverage, not just opinion page:
“New York Times editorialists write for people who think alike and seek reinforcement of their prejudices. Unconstrained by any need for compromise or political sensitivity, they provide an honest distillation of left-liberalism, something you can't always get from politicians who need to appeal broadly enough to win electoral majorities or even from the leaders of other institutions that serve a more diverse audience or clientele. What you learn from reading Times editorialists is that the fundamental attitude of left-liberalism today is one of contemptuous ignorance.”
The Lunch box fiasco--my apologies
When my husband told me about the story he'd heard on Rush Limbaugh about the 4 year old's lunch box and the school inspector not approving her home made lunch of turkey sandwich, banana, potato chips and apple juice, so she instead ate 3 chicken nuggets the school provided I told him someone was pulling Rush's chain. That no school was THAT stupid. Sorry Rush, sorry hubby--it's apparently true.
Carolina Journal
So I poked around a bit, and it's almost impossible wading through state documents and USDA regulations for pre-schools how far back this goes--but I'm quite sure it pre-dates the Obama administration (see below for 2010 HHFKA). I was horrified to see the length of documents regulating pre-schools, however.
Also, if "inspectors" can declare a lunch of a turkey sandwich, banana, potato chips and apple juice is not suitable, then charge the family for a replacement lunch (which the child didn't eat), it really does sound a lot like health care rules, doesn't it?
From the Federal Register: The Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) of 2010, a reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, provides funding for federal school meal and child
nutrition programs, increases access to healthy food, and promotes overall student wellness. By supporting school and community efforts that provide nutritious meals for children and promote overall wellness, the HHFKA is a major step forward in the fight to end childhood hunger, improve nutrition, and fight our country’s epidemic of obesity.
The origins of this bill date to the National School Lunch Act (NSLA), signed into law by Harry S. Truman in 1946. In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the first Child Nutrition Act (CNA). The CNA of 1966 expanded the School Lunch Program, established the School Breakfast Program, extended the Special Milk Program, and provided Federal funding towards non-food school equipment purchases.
The HHFKA of 2010 includes $4.5 billion in new funding for its programs and provisions over a 10 year period. The bill gives the USDA the authority to set new nutrition standards for food sold and served in schools, and requires training and certification for all food service personnel.
Are food subsidies making our kids fat?
Carolina Journal
RAEFORD — A preschooler at West Hoke Elementary School ate three chicken nuggets for lunch Jan. 30 because a state employee told her the lunch her mother packed was not nutritious.
The girl’s turkey and cheese sandwich, banana, potato chips, and apple juice did not meet U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines, according to the interpretation of the agent who was inspecting all lunch boxes in her More at Four classroom that day.
The Division of Child Development and Early Education at the Department of Health and Human Services requires all lunches served in pre-kindergarten programs — including in-home day care centers — to meet USDA guidelines. That means lunches must consist of one serving of meat, one serving of milk, one serving of grain, and two servings of fruit or vegetables, even if the lunches are brought from home.
When home-packed lunches do not include all of the required items, child care providers must supplement them with the missing ones.
So I poked around a bit, and it's almost impossible wading through state documents and USDA regulations for pre-schools how far back this goes--but I'm quite sure it pre-dates the Obama administration (see below for 2010 HHFKA). I was horrified to see the length of documents regulating pre-schools, however.
Also, if "inspectors" can declare a lunch of a turkey sandwich, banana, potato chips and apple juice is not suitable, then charge the family for a replacement lunch (which the child didn't eat), it really does sound a lot like health care rules, doesn't it?
From the Federal Register: The Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) of 2010, a reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, provides funding for federal school meal and child
nutrition programs, increases access to healthy food, and promotes overall student wellness. By supporting school and community efforts that provide nutritious meals for children and promote overall wellness, the HHFKA is a major step forward in the fight to end childhood hunger, improve nutrition, and fight our country’s epidemic of obesity.
The origins of this bill date to the National School Lunch Act (NSLA), signed into law by Harry S. Truman in 1946. In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the first Child Nutrition Act (CNA). The CNA of 1966 expanded the School Lunch Program, established the School Breakfast Program, extended the Special Milk Program, and provided Federal funding towards non-food school equipment purchases.
The HHFKA of 2010 includes $4.5 billion in new funding for its programs and provisions over a 10 year period. The bill gives the USDA the authority to set new nutrition standards for food sold and served in schools, and requires training and certification for all food service personnel.
Are food subsidies making our kids fat?
For many of us, it's no mystery
"How life began is one of nature’s enduring mysteries. Fossil and biological clues have led scientists to estimate that cells originated on this planet about four billion years ago, but exactly what catalysed their emergence has remained elusive." Nature magazine, Debate bubbles. . .
Genesis 1: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, . . ."There are 350 billion galaxies, of which our earth is an infinitesimal speck of sand on a huge beach, and still these guys don't get it. Now that kind of ignorance is a mystery to me.
John 1: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made . . "
Job 38: "2 Who is this who obscures My counsel
with ignorant words?
3 Get ready to answer Me like a man;
when I question you, you will inform Me.
4 Where were you when I established the earth?
Tell Me, if you have understanding.
5 Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?
6 What supports its foundations?
Or who laid its cornerstone
7 while the morning stars sang together
and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"
Colossians 1: "15 He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn over all creation.
16 For everything was created by Him,
in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions
or rulers or authorities—
all things have been created through Him and for Him.
17 He is before all things,
and by Him all things hold together.
18 He is also the head of the body, the church;
He is the beginning,
the firstborn from the dead,
so that He might come to have
first place in everything."
Monday, February 13, 2012
Cynthia Kenyon on aging
What controls aging? Biochemist Cynthia Kenyon has found a simple genetic mutation that can double the lifespan of a simple worm, C. Elegans. The lessons from that discovery, and others, are pointing to how we might one day significantly extend youthful human life.
Roundworms are elderly and wrinkled at 10 days and by the time they reach two weeks, they're dead. Kenyon found that by masking the DNA's daf-2 gene, her team could extend the roundworms' lives sixfold.
Roundworms are elderly and wrinkled at 10 days and by the time they reach two weeks, they're dead. Kenyon found that by masking the DNA's daf-2 gene, her team could extend the roundworms' lives sixfold.
Spinach--nutrition power house
Spinach is World's Healthiest Foods website "Food of the Week." Among the World's Healthiest vegetables, spinach comes out at the top of our ranking list for nutrient-richness. Rich in vitamins and minerals, it is also concentrated in health-promoting phytonutrients, such as carotenoids (beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin) and flavonoids, that provide you with powerful antioxidant protection. And it only takes 1 minute to cook! Enjoy baby spinach in your favorite salads or make a salad made exclusively of baby spinach.
Wash it, put it in a sauce pan with a lid turn on the heat for a minute or two, then turn it off. Serve with a little butter and salt--delicious. Or use baby spinach raw in salads or in place of lettuce. Goes great with fruit and a sweetened dressing.
Wash it, put it in a sauce pan with a lid turn on the heat for a minute or two, then turn it off. Serve with a little butter and salt--delicious. Or use baby spinach raw in salads or in place of lettuce. Goes great with fruit and a sweetened dressing.
“Did you know that spinach is not only a rich source of vitamins and minerals, but researchers have identified carotenoids and at least 13 different flavonoid phytonutrients in spinach that act as powerful antioxidants? Antioxidants combat the free radicals that cause oxidative damage to both cells and DNA. When the researchers at the USDA Agricultural Research Service's Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University tested various fruits and vegetables for their antioxidant capabilities, spinach ranked second only to kale among the vegetables tested. The various flavonoids in spinach have been shown to possess anti-inflammatory, anti-mutagenic, and anti-carcinogenic properties, while its carotenoids, such as zeaxanthin and lutein, help fight prostate cancer and protect against eye diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration and cataracts. Since carotenoids are fat-soluble, they are not well absorbed unless fat is also consumed — a ! good reason to add extra flavor and nutrition to spinach by dressing it with extra virgin olive oil. When looking at spinach.s impressive nutritional profile, remember that it also contains many other health-promoting phytonutrients for which daily recommended intakes have not yet been provided, so they are not included in the chart.
“One recent food study has shown that you don't need to worry about the overall status of antioxidants in baby spinach that has been stored and displayed in this way. In this scientific study, the overall nutrient richness of the baby spinach when exposed to constant light was actually higher than the overall nutrient richness of baby spinach leaves kept in total darkness. The period of time in the study was 9 days, and the spinach was kept at 39°F/4°C (a temperature on the lower end of the scale for most home refrigerators). These findings are good news for anyone purchasing baby spinach in "ready-to-eat" containers [which I do]. “
Unions support felons getting their pensions
"Outrage is stirring over a California law permitting state and government workers who commit crimes to continue receiving pensions. Under the law, if the worker commits a felony in the course of public duty, they are still eligible to collect pension money. On America’s Newsroom, Martha MacCallum brought up the case of a teacher convicted on 23 counts of lewd behavior who still receives $4,000 from the state.
John Fund, senior editor of American Spectator spoke out against the law. He said, “Normally I can understand that a pension is something you earned on the job and your right to keep it, but there are some crimes that are so outrageous committed while you’re on the job, that you should forfeit them.”
He thinks California should change its law and says Gov. Jerry Brown is trying to change it so that new employees who commit a horrible crime will have to forfeit them. Government employee unions say this is a right that cannot be taken away."
California state employees still get pensions in prison
John Fund, senior editor of American Spectator spoke out against the law. He said, “Normally I can understand that a pension is something you earned on the job and your right to keep it, but there are some crimes that are so outrageous committed while you’re on the job, that you should forfeit them.”
He thinks California should change its law and says Gov. Jerry Brown is trying to change it so that new employees who commit a horrible crime will have to forfeit them. Government employee unions say this is a right that cannot be taken away."
California state employees still get pensions in prison
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Getting way too over confident
Conservatives, libertarians, Republicans, Independents and moderates of both parties have underestimated Barack Obama so many times, it really surprises me to see stuff like this in print--even digitally. We know he can start wars; we know he can lie about the economy; we know he'll just go around Congress if they don't do his bidding. What's to lose? This article assumes Obama is going to play by election rules!
Barack Obama may have just lost the election. He has foolishly gone to war in an election year with tens of millions of Catholics, Protestants and Jews – Democrat, Republican and independent alike. He has thrown down a radical feminist gauntlet and dared the Church to pick it up.I think they are forgetting that ANY CRITICISM of his socialist/Marxist programs is being called racist. None of this is seen as his problem, disloyalty, or treasonist behavior by loyal Democrats. They will never, never see the light. They see only his skin color. They don't hear his words; don't see his results; don't recognize his friends. They sure don't know his heart.
They’ve picked it up.
From running up trillions in debt and deficit, to the vast expansion of the size and scope of federal bureaucracy, Mr. Obama has done more in three years to supplant our 236 year-old Constitutional Republic with a Euro-style socialist autocracy – than a lesser Marxist could have accomplished in a lifetime.
But controlling the purse strings is not nearly enough. A central element of full-blown secular-socialism is the suppression of religious liberty – principally, freedom of conscience.
Karl Marx once said: “The first requisite for the happiness of the people is the abolition of religion.”
When Karl Marx speaks, Barack Obama listens.
When black men succeed
they probably have a dad in the home with mom and the two parents had high expectations. Sixty percent of black male achievers grew up in homes with two parents. “Census data show that only 35 percent of black children grow up in two-parent homes,” reports Inside Higher Ed.
Shaun Harper set out to do something about the image of black men as failures.
Shaun Harper set out to do something about the image of black men as failures.
"He built his own research agenda as a graduate student a decade ago. In a study released today, the first from his new Center for the Study of Race and Equity in Education at Penn, Harper analyzes a cohort of 219 black men (at a range of institutional types) who meet rigorous criteria that define them as "achievers," to understand both how and why they succeeded in college, and what campus leaders and others might do to help others follow in their footsteps.This study has implications for white families, too. Many children are growing up, not just in divorced families, but with a mom or dad who didn't marry the other biological parent. Lack of marriage is the biggest reason for poverty in the United States. Uncle Sam is not a good step-father.
The answers drawn from the National Black Male College Achievement Study are anything but elemental. Demographically, the subjects look much like their black male peers -- three in five hail from low-income or working class backgrounds (compared to about two-thirds of all African-American families) and nearly half have parents with no college degree -- and as a group they shun the idea that they are cognitively smarter than their less-successful friends or cousins or other peers (and their high-school academic records largely back that up).
What does differentiate them, the study suggests, is a complex stew of mostly external factors that appeared to give them a sense that college was not only possible but expected, and engaged them academically and otherwise in their schools and colleges. Among those influences: involved parents with high expectations for them; at least one K-12 teacher who took a personal interest in their academic and personal future; adequate financial support to pay for college; and a transition to college in which high expectations were set for them as much if not more by influential black male juniors and seniors at their institutions as by formal programs designed to smooth their way.
Extremists don't respect the religion of others
Ours isn’t the only government with radicals who want to bring down religion (see stories about HHS vs. Catholics). Look at what Islamist extremists were doing to priceless Buddhist statues in the Maldives earlier this week.
During the coup that ousted President Mohamed Nasheed on Tuesday, scenes of violence resulted in the wanton destruction of historical treasures. Considered as a mark of idolatry by Islamic salafists, statues and monuments were destroyed by extremists blamed for the toppling of Nasheed.Read more:
The Maldives’ National Museum was the scene of the destruction, as a group of five men deliberately targeted artefact's from the Maldives pre-Islamic era, destroying Buddhist relics.
Primo dierum omnium, hymn of St. Gregory
First of All Days
Hail, day! whereon the One in Three
First formed the earth by sure decree,
The day its Maker rose again,
And vanquished death, and burst our chain.
Away with sleep and slothful ease!
We raise our hearts and bend our knees,
And early seek the Lord of all,
Obedient to the Prophet’s call:
That he may hearken to our prayer,
Stretch forth his strong right arm to spare,
And, every past offence forgiven,
Restore us to our home in heaven.
Assembled here this holy day,
This holiest hour we raise the lay;
And, O, that he to whom we sing,
May now reward our offering!
O Father of unclouded light,
keep us this day as in Thy sight,
in word and deed that we may be
from every touch of evil free.
That this our body's mortal frame
may know no sins, and fear no shame,
nor fire hereafter be the end
of passions which our bosoms rend.
Redeemer of the world, we pray
that Thou wouldst wash our sins away,
and give us, of Thy boundless grace,
the blessings of the heavenly place.
That we, thence exiled by our sin,
hereafter may be welcomed in:
that blessed time awaiting now,
with hymns of glory here we bow.
Most Holy Father, hear our cry,
Through Jesus Christ our Lord most High
Who, with the Holy Ghost and thee
Doth live and reign eternally.
This hymn is attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great (540-604) and there is good reason to think he may have written it. The ancient preface to St. Columban's Altus prosator describes the arrival of St. Gregory's messengers from Rome bearing gifts and a set of hymns for the Liturgy of the Hours. In turn, St. Columban sent a set of hymns he had composed to St. Gregory. There has been considerable debate of late as to whether St. Gregory really did write the hymn or if he simply sent what was current in Rome at the time. Considerable evidence can be put forth for both positions.
Hail, day! whereon the One in Three
First formed the earth by sure decree,
The day its Maker rose again,
And vanquished death, and burst our chain.
Away with sleep and slothful ease!
We raise our hearts and bend our knees,
And early seek the Lord of all,
Obedient to the Prophet’s call:
That he may hearken to our prayer,
Stretch forth his strong right arm to spare,
And, every past offence forgiven,
Restore us to our home in heaven.
Assembled here this holy day,
This holiest hour we raise the lay;
And, O, that he to whom we sing,
May now reward our offering!
O Father of unclouded light,
keep us this day as in Thy sight,
in word and deed that we may be
from every touch of evil free.
That this our body's mortal frame
may know no sins, and fear no shame,
nor fire hereafter be the end
of passions which our bosoms rend.
Redeemer of the world, we pray
that Thou wouldst wash our sins away,
and give us, of Thy boundless grace,
the blessings of the heavenly place.
That we, thence exiled by our sin,
hereafter may be welcomed in:
that blessed time awaiting now,
with hymns of glory here we bow.
Most Holy Father, hear our cry,
Through Jesus Christ our Lord most High
Who, with the Holy Ghost and thee
Doth live and reign eternally.
This hymn is attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great (540-604) and there is good reason to think he may have written it. The ancient preface to St. Columban's Altus prosator describes the arrival of St. Gregory's messengers from Rome bearing gifts and a set of hymns for the Liturgy of the Hours. In turn, St. Columban sent a set of hymns he had composed to St. Gregory. There has been considerable debate of late as to whether St. Gregory really did write the hymn or if he simply sent what was current in Rome at the time. Considerable evidence can be put forth for both positions.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Martin Luther and his namesake
Martin Luther perhaps never saw an elephant, but he was very familiar with donkeys. He said that the old Adam is "the obstinate donkey, fixing for a fight," against whom the new man wages "constant battle."
When Michael King, Sr. a Baptist minister changed his name to Martin Luther King after the great reformer, his son Michael Jr. also changed his name and became Martin Luther King, Jr. They were Republicans. His friends and family continued to call him Mike.
Democrats were so oppressive to blacks in the South, using lynching to terrorize, they instituted the "Jim Crow" laws and resegregated the schools. In order to vote at all, many blacks became Republicans. The push for civil rights was done by the Republican party in the 40s and 50s, and was fought tooth and nail by the likes of powerful Democrats like Lyndon Johnson, LBJ. But when it became an opportunity to put them under the control of government, LBJ changed his tune with the Civil Rights Act, a Republican cause, and his "War on Poverty."
This lesson on black history will probably not be taught in the public schools this month.
When Michael King, Sr. a Baptist minister changed his name to Martin Luther King after the great reformer, his son Michael Jr. also changed his name and became Martin Luther King, Jr. They were Republicans. His friends and family continued to call him Mike.
Democrats were so oppressive to blacks in the South, using lynching to terrorize, they instituted the "Jim Crow" laws and resegregated the schools. In order to vote at all, many blacks became Republicans. The push for civil rights was done by the Republican party in the 40s and 50s, and was fought tooth and nail by the likes of powerful Democrats like Lyndon Johnson, LBJ. But when it became an opportunity to put them under the control of government, LBJ changed his tune with the Civil Rights Act, a Republican cause, and his "War on Poverty."
This lesson on black history will probably not be taught in the public schools this month.
Do the homeless need a home? Guest blogger Edward J. Shannon
Mr. Shannon is a residential architect from Waterloo, Iowa. For those of you outside the architectural field, that means his specialty is designing homes. You may see some photos of his work at this web site. He is a Christian with a heart for those less fortunate. He has given a lot of thought and time to the problems of the homeless, and like me thinks the problem is much bigger than a warm bed and a secure roof. I appreciate his willingness to be a guest blogger.
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Also, and this too is counter intuitive for non-believers and even many Christians, helping the homeless and especially more personally by turning around and picking up Emory, gave Mr. Shannon an opportunity to meet Jesus face to face. This is made clear in Matthew 25. Mr. Shannon has experienced God's love in his own life, and he is sharing that love with others.
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I don't believe homelessness is an architectural problem, but a social one. I serve in churches and ministries that have homeless populations. I have seen first hand that many "choose" to be homeless. It doesn't sound rational to clear thinking people, but mental illness, addictions, and broken families can foster this.I'm in agreement with Mr. Shannon on most points, however, even family support can do little for the mentally ill and addicted. Most have been burned out, and have had to go to a "tough love" stance in order to help their family member. In the Columbus area I think we all remember the viral video of Ted Williams, the homeless man with the fabulous voice who got national attention, job offers, money, and was even on the Dr. Phil show who paid for him to enter rehab (he had already regressed since the video went viral). Talent, money, education, a voice that God gives very few, and family support were not lacking. He is an alcoholic. He has been in rehab several times since all the fame.
I used to drop my boys off (at their mother's) in Palatine at 5 pm on Sundays. I would be heading back to Winnetka on Palatine Road and would usually see a homeless man in Arlington Heights walking west bound. I would turn around and give him a ride to a church in Palatine that had a PADS program [Providing Advocacy, Dignity, and Shelter Crisis Services, usually in church buildings of the Chicago area]. His name was Emory. He walked with a bad limp and it just pained me to see him walking a 3.5 mile trek. On our short drives, I began to get to know Emory a little. I asked, "What happened?" He explained to me that he had a college degree and was once married. His marriage fell apart and he lost his job (that happened to me, too) and could never "pick himself up". As such, he went down the slippery slope of becoming homeless. I asked if he had family in the area (this is key, I believe). He told me he had a sister on the South Side of Chicago. I asked why he didn't move in with her and try to get up on his feet. He shied away from my questions, saying he didn't want to impose; they didn't get along well, etc.
Where are the families? If I found myself in that predicament, I am confident I could move in with a family member or close friend. In the 1930s depression years, many were unemployed, yet many families lived together. This doesn't happen with this demographic, and I have seen stories, like Emory's, time and time again.
I don't think any amount of free housing will solve this problem. Housing is not the problem. It is a symptom of the problem. These people need family support. They need counseling and (often times) addictions intervention. Architects will not solve this problem, nor should we. I know a few, like Donald Macdonald of San Francisco, and the "Mad Houser's of Atlanta, have tried. I commend them for their efforts, but wonder if they have actually produced tangible results.
Also, and this too is counter intuitive for non-believers and even many Christians, helping the homeless and especially more personally by turning around and picking up Emory, gave Mr. Shannon an opportunity to meet Jesus face to face. This is made clear in Matthew 25. Mr. Shannon has experienced God's love in his own life, and he is sharing that love with others.
Friday, February 10, 2012
A book I won't read--Mimi's tale of a handsome lie
"Mimi Alford’s belated tell-all, Once Upon a Secret, should be assigned in women’s-studies classes as an illustration of the power imbalances in employer-employee sexual liaisons, especially those involving commanders-in-chief and their interns. . .
. . . Within her first week as an intern, JFK’s friend and procurer Dave Powers invited her to a midday swim with the president and some of the gals from the secretarial pool. At the end of the day, the rising sophomore at Massachusetts’ Wheaton College was invited to a get-together in the family residence. She was plied with daiquiris, then the president peeled her away from the group with an invitation to a private tour of the residence.
Alford lost her virginity on the fashionably elegant Mrs. Kennedy’s bed. “I wouldn’t describe what happened that night as making love,” Alford writes. “But I wouldn’t call it nonconsensual, either.” "
He never kissed her she says, but required her to perform oral sex on Powers (it was his job to find her an abortion doctor if needed) while he watched and asked for baby brother Teddy.
A handsome lie
Washington Post comments
Rock Center interview
I'm just so very sorry that I ever wept tears over that man in 1963.
. . . Within her first week as an intern, JFK’s friend and procurer Dave Powers invited her to a midday swim with the president and some of the gals from the secretarial pool. At the end of the day, the rising sophomore at Massachusetts’ Wheaton College was invited to a get-together in the family residence. She was plied with daiquiris, then the president peeled her away from the group with an invitation to a private tour of the residence.
Alford lost her virginity on the fashionably elegant Mrs. Kennedy’s bed. “I wouldn’t describe what happened that night as making love,” Alford writes. “But I wouldn’t call it nonconsensual, either.” "
He never kissed her she says, but required her to perform oral sex on Powers (it was his job to find her an abortion doctor if needed) while he watched and asked for baby brother Teddy.
A handsome lie
Washington Post comments
Rock Center interview
I'm just so very sorry that I ever wept tears over that man in 1963.
HHS Mandate vs. God's people
"The LORD frustrates the counsel of the nations; He thwarts the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation to generation. Happy is the nation whose God is Yahweh--the people He has chosen to be His own possession!" Ps 33:10-12
I love that word "thwarts." All those consonants smothering and beating up on one little old vowel. One can make a difference in this world. You can even rearrange the letters and find other words, "tsar start that war" (HHS tsar Kathleen Sibelius). Today demand to be given back the religious freedoms our founders intended and wrote into the Bill of Rights, and not just this latest dust-up. The erosion didn't start in January 2009! Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg doesn't appreciate our Constitutional liberties, but we do.
I love that word "thwarts." All those consonants smothering and beating up on one little old vowel. One can make a difference in this world. You can even rearrange the letters and find other words, "tsar start that war" (HHS tsar Kathleen Sibelius). Today demand to be given back the religious freedoms our founders intended and wrote into the Bill of Rights, and not just this latest dust-up. The erosion didn't start in January 2009! Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg doesn't appreciate our Constitutional liberties, but we do.
Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
Thursday, February 09, 2012
Newsy on Obama's mandate
Here's how Newsy describes itself: "Newsy is multi-source, multi-platform video news. It’s the only video news service that allows users to compare bias by highlighting nuances in reporting. Through short professionally produced videos for mobile devices and the web, Newsy provides context with convenience - making you smarter, faster."
I haven't quite figured out how Newsy works, and any compromise discussed in the opening seconds isn't actually happening. It's all calculated to not offend voters (on the left), with those of us who still believe in the first amendment left out in the cold.
Free at last--from pain--guest blogger
A former colleague of mine comments on my comments on Dr. Blumenthal's 2 part series on HITECH which appeared in December in the New England Journal of Medicine. I was concerned about a number of issues, including the rush to push it through and the shaky privacy issues, but here's an alternate view of how advances in digitized health records mandated by PPACA could benefit the patient. She is now pain free after surgery and it has given her back her life, but some of her experiences in getting there were extremely unpleasant.
I thought this was an excellent article evaluating the benefits and challenges of bringing one part of American health care into the 21st century. I recommend we all read the full Blumenthal article. It's short and accessible. I took away something very different from it. It left me hopeful that things might change for the better.This is certainly an eye-opener, however, if patients can be abused in such a manner with face to face, 21st century care, I can hardly see EHR improving on that!
Although we all rightly are concerned with the privacy of our health care data, as the article mentions, paper data is not secure either. But online data does present more challenges because no system is un-hackable. However, that's not a good excuse to stay in the 19th century forever.
My doctor's office automated their records and system a few years ago, making him an early adopter. There was slow down in the first 6 weeks, they told me, but then it got VERY efficient. When I go in now, it is faster, he knows exactly which tests are due and he prints out any prescriptions right from his laptop or faxes it directly to the pharmacy. He spends time talking to me, not flipping through paper files looking for previous test results, which are all on his laptop. I love it. He does too. After the initial few weeks of learning the new system, everyone in his office is fluent in it and very efficient.
None of these systems are developed from scratch in each doctor's office. They are turnkey systems with training provided. So the analogy of creating LCS from scratch isn't comparable.
Here's my example of why I think a state-of-the-art health care information system is desirable. Before my second hip surgery, I was in a wheelchair and in excruciating pain. I realized I couldn't keep working unless I got "real" painkillers. So I was referred to an OSU-affiliated pain clinic.
The biggest fear that pain clinics have is that patients will game the system, get painkillers from multiple doctors and sell them on the black market. This does happen. But I didn't realize that this fear made some pain clinics abuse their patients.
The waiting room was NOT filled with 20-somethings in black leather strung out on illegal drugs. It was filled with about 30 moaning elderly middle-class men and women, some in wheelchairs, some with canes or walkers, most were accompanied by worried relatives. One women was in such pain, she passed out during the wait. The office staff wouldn't help her. She said: "They do that to get sympathy so we'll give them drugs."
Her husband, who was almost shouting, had to be calmed down by other patients and we all demanded someone come out and help her into the bathroom to put cold water on her face, since not of us was strong enough to help her out of her wheelchair. They begrudgingly helped this "potential" drug abuser.
When it was my turn to be seen, the questions the doctor asked had to do with whether I was being seen by another doctor and if I was getting drugs from them too. If it had been said for my benefit to make sure I didn't overdose on a combination of things, it would have been appropriate. But it wasn't. It was an interrogation that implied I was a drug addict trying to cheat the system. I had never been treated so nastily by a doctor and I was really surprised. But pain clinics act this way because there is NO WAY TO CHECK RECORDS TO SEE IF OTHER DOCTORS are also handing out prescriptions. Finally, the doctor said he'd give me a prescription, if I passed the drug test, which was required of everyone.
So I went to the drug testing clinic he mandated. I had to be there in 20 minutes (or it was invalid), so I wouldn't have time to get a "clean" sample elsewhere. If you've never had a drug test (some states want all welfare recipients to pay for one themselves, before they can sign up for benefits), it isn't as easy as you might think.
A same-sex attendant accompanies you into a bathroom and watches you. You pee in a cup while someone watches your hands to make sure you don't substitute another sample. It was not handicap-friendly. The commode was on a platform in a small room with nothing I could hold on to easily. Because of my hips, it was excruciatingly painful. It was humiliating. I thought of the women in their 70s and 80s in the waiting room of the clinic who had to do this. It made me angry at our backward system.
The clinic said the test was a nominal cost, like $30. (Just like states say the charge will be nominal for welfare recipients, who must pay for the drug test themselves.) Turns out it was $250. I refused to pay that much and after weeks of arguing over paperwork, the price was changed.
Had there been a centralized health information system in place, this entire traumatic episode would not have been necessary. The pain clinic could have pulled up my x-rays, seen the bone-on-bone hips, seen I had no other prescriptions, and prescribed an appropriate painkiller. Instead, they were ruled by fear and lack of information. The prescription they gave me was inadequate; the surgeon said he didn't know how I managed the pain with only what the clinic prescribed me.
I, and all those suffering people, would have gotten better, cheaper, less humiliating care. The people who REALLY are gaming the system might be caught faster and punished. The insurance companies and we might have saved a small amount of time and money, but multiplied by millions of people resulted in huge savings, if there had been an investment by the government to create a unified medical information infrastructure.
I'm afraid of abuse of medical information. But that won't keep me from wanting to have a modern medical information system to allow better care, better tracing of public health concerns (like food poisonings from unknown sources), better tracking of outcomes using different types of procedures, and brings us closer to the care provided by other industrialized nations.
Do you know where you should move if you are a Type 1 diabetic? FRANCE. Because they have proven the slower speed of their dialysis treatment provides better patient outcomes and longer life. U.S. hospitals don't have a system to track outcomes, unless they do a special (costly) research study, because we don't have any medical information infrastructure. So we do what the insurance companies will pay for, which is the faster version, which results in more deaths for US diabetics than in other industrialized countries overall.
I went to my doctor years ago with what could have been either food poisoning (after eating at a new restaurant) or a flu bug. I asked him if other people in the area were coming in with similar symptoms, in case it was food poisoning. His answer: we don't have any way of knowing. They would have gone to different doctors and no information is shared. How's that for public health? We have to wait for multiple people to die to find out if there is a public health issue in an area, because deaths are reported.
I know I'm not going to convince anyone who, like the clinic doctor, is guided primarily by fear of abuse. But I believe shared medical information is vital to us as a country and as individuals. Everything can be abused. That clinic was so afraid of abuse that they were abusing people in a different way, by treating everyone as a criminal. They provided expensive, inadequate care. They had no way to track the outcome of the treatments they prescribed or even if their patients lived or died.
The only follow-up I ever received from the pain clinic was a post card a few years later saying they moved to a new address. We deserve better health care than this.
Abbott and Costello discuss unemployment
Unemployed vs. Out of Work from Abbott & Costello's Point of View.
COSTELLO: I want to talk about the unemployment rate in America .
ABBOTT: Good Subject. Terrible Times. It's 9%.
COSTELLO: That many people are out of work?
ABBOTT: No, that's 16%.
COSTELLO: You just said 9%.
ABBOTT: 9% Unemployed.
COSTELLO: Right 9% out of work.
ABBOTT: No, that's 16%.
COSTELLO: Okay, so it's 16% unemployed.
ABBOTT: No, that's 9%...
COSTELLO: WAIT A MINUTE. Is it 9% or 16%?
ABBOTT: 9% are unemployed. 16% are out of work.
COSTELLO: IF you are out of work you are unemployed.
ABBOTT: No, you can't count the "Out of Work" as the unemployed. You have to look for work to be unemployed.
COSTELLO: BUT THEY ARE OUT OF WORK!!!
ABBOTT: No, you miss my point.
COSTELLO: What point?
ABBOTT: Someone who doesn't look for work, can't be counted with those who look for work. It wouldn't be fair.
COSTELLO: To who?
ABBOTT: The unemployed.
COSTELLO: But they are ALL out of work.
ABBOTT: No, the unemployed are actively looking for work... Those who are out of work stopped looking. They gave up. And, if you give up, you are no longer in the ranks of the unemployed.
COSTELLO: So if you're off the unemployment roles, that would count as less unemployment?
ABBOTT: Unemployment would go down. Absolutely!
COSTELLO: The unemployment just goes down because you don't look for work?
ABBOTT: Absolutely it goes down. That's how you get to 9%. Otherwise, it would be 16%. You don't want to read about 16% unemployment do ya?
COSTELLO: That would be frightening.
ABBOTT: Absolutely.
COSTELLO: Wait, I got a question for you. That means they're two ways to bring down the unemployment number?
ABBOTT: Two ways is correct.
COSTELLO: Unemployment can go down if someone gets a job?
ABBOTT: Correct.
COSTELLO: And unemployment can also go down if you stop looking for a job?
ABBOTT: Bingo.
COSTELLO: So there are two ways to bring unemployment down, and the easier of the two is to just stop looking for work.
ABBOTT: Now you're thinking like an economist.
COSTELLO: I don't even know what I just said.
COSTELLO: I want to talk about the unemployment rate in America .
ABBOTT: Good Subject. Terrible Times. It's 9%.
COSTELLO: That many people are out of work?
ABBOTT: No, that's 16%.
COSTELLO: You just said 9%.
ABBOTT: 9% Unemployed.
COSTELLO: Right 9% out of work.
ABBOTT: No, that's 16%.
COSTELLO: Okay, so it's 16% unemployed.
ABBOTT: No, that's 9%...
COSTELLO: WAIT A MINUTE. Is it 9% or 16%?
ABBOTT: 9% are unemployed. 16% are out of work.
COSTELLO: IF you are out of work you are unemployed.
ABBOTT: No, you can't count the "Out of Work" as the unemployed. You have to look for work to be unemployed.
COSTELLO: BUT THEY ARE OUT OF WORK!!!
ABBOTT: No, you miss my point.
COSTELLO: What point?
ABBOTT: Someone who doesn't look for work, can't be counted with those who look for work. It wouldn't be fair.
COSTELLO: To who?
ABBOTT: The unemployed.
COSTELLO: But they are ALL out of work.
ABBOTT: No, the unemployed are actively looking for work... Those who are out of work stopped looking. They gave up. And, if you give up, you are no longer in the ranks of the unemployed.
COSTELLO: So if you're off the unemployment roles, that would count as less unemployment?
ABBOTT: Unemployment would go down. Absolutely!
COSTELLO: The unemployment just goes down because you don't look for work?
ABBOTT: Absolutely it goes down. That's how you get to 9%. Otherwise, it would be 16%. You don't want to read about 16% unemployment do ya?
COSTELLO: That would be frightening.
ABBOTT: Absolutely.
COSTELLO: Wait, I got a question for you. That means they're two ways to bring down the unemployment number?
ABBOTT: Two ways is correct.
COSTELLO: Unemployment can go down if someone gets a job?
ABBOTT: Correct.
COSTELLO: And unemployment can also go down if you stop looking for a job?
ABBOTT: Bingo.
COSTELLO: So there are two ways to bring unemployment down, and the easier of the two is to just stop looking for work.
ABBOTT: Now you're thinking like an economist.
COSTELLO: I don't even know what I just said.
Pro-abortion people hysterical over plans to save babies
This is just terrible. There are babies escaping the abortionists! "Lawmakers across the nation pursued a record number of reproductive health and rights-related provisions in 2011, a new report from the Guttmacher Institute finds, enacting 135 measures in 36 states — “an increase from the 89 enacted in 2010 and the 77 enacted in 2009.” Sixty-eight percent of the provisions — 92 in 24 states — restricted access to abortion services."
Well, not so much. An outright ban on abortion was rejected by voters, and some other states banned abortion after 20 weeks (probably because of viability issues and unlike the President they didn't want to let the baby die flopping around like a fish out of water).
And Oh the Horror--a waiting period to think it through!!! The most egregious being 72 hours and counseling.
Ultrasound requirement! Whoa! That's positively medieval in it's cruelty. Imagine showing a woman an ultrasound of her baby.
States can't charge the abortions back to the tax payers through insurance coverage of employees. Oh, that's mean. How unfair--of course, the woman can get coverage if she pays for it--but the tragedy here to the pro-death people are that everyone isn't forced to pay for other people's abortions.
And stricter standards for abortion clinics. Now that's really hurtful, isn't it?
But it make the above chart just . . . almost go off the chart.
Breast Cancer and Planned Parenthood goons
Breast cancer isn’t the biggest killer of women—I think heart disease is. But the point about what has been happening between Susan G. Komen and Planned Parenthood is politics, how women (and some men) are manipulated by the media in cahoots with big pharma and the government, and if you wish to broaden the range of the net, how powerful non-profits like Komen and Planned Parenthood have become.
I believe someday in the future, citizens and historians alike will be scratching their heads wondering why people of the late 20th century couldn’t figure out that if women began taking powerful hormones as teen-agers (sex education in schools and hormones for 12 year olds) it just might have an affect not only on their children, but their grandchildren and great grands through the cellular level. They might even by then decide there’s a connection to autism spectrum, allergies, hyperactivity, etc. and all those conditions we never saw in our classmates when I was growing up. Health officials of 20-50 years from now will be as puzzled as we are now when we wonder how the industrialists and farmers couldn’t know that the filth, manure and chemicals they poured into the water would be affecting people down stream because waterways are a living organism.
If poverty researchers and social workers of the future are smarter than the ones of today, they might even look at the soaring statistics for out of wedlock babies which parallels the increased use of contraceptives by unmarried teenagers and its relationship to poverty and low income. Although that’s almost too much to hope for.
The breast cancer industry, like the poverty industry, has some big players. And don't you forget it if you value your knee caps.
I believe someday in the future, citizens and historians alike will be scratching their heads wondering why people of the late 20th century couldn’t figure out that if women began taking powerful hormones as teen-agers (sex education in schools and hormones for 12 year olds) it just might have an affect not only on their children, but their grandchildren and great grands through the cellular level. They might even by then decide there’s a connection to autism spectrum, allergies, hyperactivity, etc. and all those conditions we never saw in our classmates when I was growing up. Health officials of 20-50 years from now will be as puzzled as we are now when we wonder how the industrialists and farmers couldn’t know that the filth, manure and chemicals they poured into the water would be affecting people down stream because waterways are a living organism.
If poverty researchers and social workers of the future are smarter than the ones of today, they might even look at the soaring statistics for out of wedlock babies which parallels the increased use of contraceptives by unmarried teenagers and its relationship to poverty and low income. Although that’s almost too much to hope for.
The breast cancer industry, like the poverty industry, has some big players. And don't you forget it if you value your knee caps.
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Full employment at Planned Parenthood guaranteed
The illegitimacy rate for births among teenage girls hovered around five to seven percent for decades, until about 1960. Between 1960 and 1970, it doubled as the birth control pill helped usher in the 'Sexual Revolution.' After 1970, the teenage illegitimacy rate literally exploded as comprehensive sex education programs and school-based clinics were introduced. Currently, the illegitimacy rate among teenage girls is about forty percent.
Link
Link
Have you ever wondered about how contraceptives are developed and tested?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the abortifacient Norplant, [developed by the Population Council] for public use on December 10, 1990. Norplant was formally introduced to the American public in February 1991.
As of December 2004, about one and a half million North American women had used Norplant. More than 50,000 of these women have brought more than 200 lawsuits, including 70 class-action suits, against Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories.
The Population Council with roots in the eugenics movement (like Planned Parenthood) is headquartered in NY, but has 18 offices in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and does work in more than 60 countries. It employs more than 500 people from 33 countries ($74 million budget). It develops abortifacients and contraceptives (Norplant, Jadelle, IUDs, Mirena) and tests them on third world women before bringing them home to us as "safe and effective." Even so there are many law suits pending because these chemicals can really mess up a woman's body for years. Population Council was established and funded by the Rockefellers. http://popcouncil.org/who/leadership.asp
I've always wondered how they round up a group of sample women who've just had sexual intercourse, then take the drug to be tested from the researcher, then take a test to see if an embryo has implanted, then compared to women who took a placebo or nothing (how much did they know?). Same with AIDS research.
Anyone know how you procure women for research like that? What job title do the people have who go out and find them? “Randy round-up,” “Rustlers for research,” “Corral and collect.” I read a lot of medical literature. That's never been explained.
Look. New drugs have to be tested on a mammal somewhere along the line--either animals or poor people. This could be why strong links are showing up between contraceptives and breast cancer and abortion and breast cancer.
As of December 2004, about one and a half million North American women had used Norplant. More than 50,000 of these women have brought more than 200 lawsuits, including 70 class-action suits, against Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories.
The Population Council with roots in the eugenics movement (like Planned Parenthood) is headquartered in NY, but has 18 offices in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and does work in more than 60 countries. It employs more than 500 people from 33 countries ($74 million budget). It develops abortifacients and contraceptives (Norplant, Jadelle, IUDs, Mirena) and tests them on third world women before bringing them home to us as "safe and effective." Even so there are many law suits pending because these chemicals can really mess up a woman's body for years. Population Council was established and funded by the Rockefellers. http://popcouncil.org/who/leadership.asp
I've always wondered how they round up a group of sample women who've just had sexual intercourse, then take the drug to be tested from the researcher, then take a test to see if an embryo has implanted, then compared to women who took a placebo or nothing (how much did they know?). Same with AIDS research.
Anyone know how you procure women for research like that? What job title do the people have who go out and find them? “Randy round-up,” “Rustlers for research,” “Corral and collect.” I read a lot of medical literature. That's never been explained.
Look. New drugs have to be tested on a mammal somewhere along the line--either animals or poor people. This could be why strong links are showing up between contraceptives and breast cancer and abortion and breast cancer.
Bill Clinton and the fight to save Social Security
Bill Clinton had planned to reform Social Security with private accounts and Medicare with vouchers. What happened? Monica Lewinsky. "Left wing Democrats in Congress threatened to throw him under the bus in the impeachment proceedings unless he completely dropped the reform ideas they regarded as
heresy. Unfortunately for the country, he obliged." John Goodman reports at Health Blog.
heresy. Unfortunately for the country, he obliged." John Goodman reports at Health Blog.
Clinton was serious. He had his Treasury Department draw up detailed plans. In fact, when Pat Moynihan, the colorful intellectual senator from New York, was appointed by President George W. Bush to co-chair the Social Security reform commission, the first thing he did was ask the Treasury to send him the Clinton-era planning documents so that the commission could continue where Clinton’s policy team left off.Now think about the motives of the Democrat left here. Private plans for retirement--same thing as Bush wanted--something all of us with half a brain have been doing for years even if covered by SS; vouchers for Medicare--isn't that what Federal employees have--choices? Wouldn't that have cut down on waste and fraud by increasing competition? So what would be the problem? Democrats can't stand the word choices, unless it's killing an unborn child--then they're all for it. It would have cut into their power over the people. Democrats just have to have the power, because then they control the votes.
Tuesday, February 07, 2012
Why is Obama offending so many voters?
Answer is becoming clear: So he can create chaos and have an excuse to call off the elections. The Occupiers probably won't have the stamina or desire to stick it out--but the Catholics might. They'll be peaceful, just like the Tea Party or the 9/12 groups, but that won't matter. To the leftists like Pelosi, they are "terrorists." So if they do take to the streets, Obama can seize control. Very clever, and right out of Saul Alinsky's little guide book and Bill Ayers coaching.
The battle over the Obama administration’s contraception mandate continues to heat up. On Monday, Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, made some bold proclamations regarding just how hard the Catholic Church plans to fight the government’s requirement that religious-affiliated schools and organizations cover contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs.Glenn Beck radio show, Feb. 7, 2012
“Never before, unprecedented in American history, for the federal government to line up against the Roman Catholic Church,” said Donohue. “This is going to be fought out with lawsuits, with court decisions, and, dare I say it, maybe even in the streets.”
Here, Donohue is calling for Catholics and supporters of religious freedom to join in peaceful protest against the mandate. Similar action (peaceful marches and events) has been taken in New York City, where religious groups have converged to fight a local ban on the use of public schools for worship.
Upon reading the news this morning, Glenn said that “every alarm bell in me went off.”
“Because something is not right here. There’s no way this President can lose the Catholic vote.”
Glenn said that President Obama relies heavily on the Hispanic voting bloc for support, the majority of whom are Catholic. There were also many members of the Catholic clergy who helped lobby for ObamaCare to pass just a few years ago. Glenn said that the Catholic community believes in social justice, but that a segment of them believe that government should play a role in bringing it to fruition rather than relying on individual charity. Those that follow the more progressive philosophy sided with Obama on ObamaCare, not now he has turned against them.
Dog and Pony Show--a Supreme and a McFaul guy
Ruth Bader Ginsberg tells Egypt our Constitution is old and shouldn't be their model--after all, in the U.S. the citizen is higher than the government and the Constitution is actually written to protect the citizen from the government. Plus, and she didn't say this or even think it, if you have our Constitution, people will be always crossing your borders attempting to get away from their own governments.
Wrote [John] Hayward of Ginsburg’s advice: “The last thing an Egyptian populace struggling for freedom from the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood needs to hear is a paean from a fashionable liberal about ultramodern state charters that enshrine the use of compulsive force in the service of leftist ‘positive rights,’ such as the right not to be offended.” He added that “the more fervent Muslims trying to turn Egypt into a theocracy are very good at becoming offended, and they love the notion of using compulsive force to remove the objects of their ire.” LinkU.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul tells NPR that President Obama's policy when it comes to Russia is that we're "going to support what we like to call universal values" and "not American values." The Senate confirmed McFaul as ambassador on December 17, 2011.
Title inflation at The Ohio State University
From recent announcements at The Ohio State University:
On April 29, 2011, Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee and Executive Vice President and Provost Joseph A. Alutto recommended the appointment of Bernadette M. Melnyk, PhD, RN, CPNP/PMHNP, FNAP, FANN, (Dean and Distinguished Foundation Professor in Nursing at Arizona State University's College of Nursing Health Innovation) as Dean of the College of Nursing and Associate Vice President for Health Promotion and Chief Wellness Officer. Subject to approval by the Board of Trustees, her appointment will be effective on September 15, 2011.But not to be outdone, the OSU Medical Center then had to have a VP of Care Coordination and Health Promotion.
"Dr. Melnyk's role as Ohio State's chief wellness officer is, I believe, the first such position at a university and sends a strong signal about our commitment and proactive approach to ensuring a healthy workforce and student body," Provost Alutto said.
On February 4, Ohio State announced that Larry Lewellen, current Vice President for Human Resources, will be joining The Ohio State University Medical Center as Vice President of Care Coordination and Health Promotion. Subject to approval by the Board of Trustees, his new appointment will be effective March 1.Hard to know how the salaries inflate with the number and complexity of the titles.
Some people still think homelessness is a housing problem
In order to provide work for architects, this fellow writes at an architectural forum: "I would suggest that the AIA Housing KC develop a National Housing Policy that says, in effect, that it should be a right for every citizen in the United States to go to bed each night in a safe, secure and weather tight environment. In other words, we need to eliminate homelessness from our nation's vocabulary."
Substance abuse is often a cause of homelessness. Addictive disorders disrupt relationships with family and friends and often cause people to lose their jobs. For people who are already struggling to pay their bills, the onset or exacerbation of an addiction may cause them to lose their housing. A 2008 survey by the United States Conference of Mayors asked 25 cities for their top three causes of homelessness. Substance abuse was the single largest cause of homelessness for single adults (reported by 68% of cities). Substance abuse was also mentioned by 12% of cities as one of the top three causes of homelessness for families. According to Didenko and Pankratz (2007), two-thirds of homeless people report that drugs and/or alcohol were a major reason for their becoming homeless.Further more, a tiny percentage of the homeless are chronically homeless.
In many ["some" would be a better word choice, nb] situations, however, substance abuse is a result of homelessness rather than a cause. Link
5% of the nearly 2 million homeless people reported by the USHUD in 2009 categorized as chronically homeless, nearly all people living without a home for more than a month have family problems and some kind of disability, including drug or alcohol addiction or mental illness. Based on the 2009 HUD Homeless Assessment Report to Congress, LinkSo unless the architects have found some sort of super-human solution to drug and alcohol addiction, mental illness and chronic family problems, they need to look elsewhere for a solution to their own employment problems.
Monday, February 06, 2012
Occupiers continue to challenge our freedoms
"An Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge has issued a supplemental order compelling the county sheriff to oust all Occupy Pittsburgh protesters and tents from Mellon Green.
Judge Christine Ward had previously given the protesters three days to vacate the space. The deadline passed this morning at 11:15 a.m. as protesters continued to gather and about a dozen tents remained.
But Sheriff William Mullen said he would not have his deputies enforce it until they got a specific order to do so, which came this afternoon."
About 6,500 occupiers have been arrested across the country since last fall. How does that compare with the awful, terrible terrorist-bent Tea Party? It was reported that an Oakland, California couple who'd been active in the community and helping poor people were strangled to death by their teen-age son--who'd been skipping school lately to hang out with the Occupy Oakland crowd. Well, isn't that what Bill Ayers advised radicals back in the 60s. He was a spoiled rich kid, too. Your remember good old Bill--he helped with the Obama campaign last time around.
Read more
Judge Christine Ward had previously given the protesters three days to vacate the space. The deadline passed this morning at 11:15 a.m. as protesters continued to gather and about a dozen tents remained.
But Sheriff William Mullen said he would not have his deputies enforce it until they got a specific order to do so, which came this afternoon."
About 6,500 occupiers have been arrested across the country since last fall. How does that compare with the awful, terrible terrorist-bent Tea Party? It was reported that an Oakland, California couple who'd been active in the community and helping poor people were strangled to death by their teen-age son--who'd been skipping school lately to hang out with the Occupy Oakland crowd. Well, isn't that what Bill Ayers advised radicals back in the 60s. He was a spoiled rich kid, too. Your remember good old Bill--he helped with the Obama campaign last time around.
Read more
Obama won't back down on contraceptive requirement for Catholics
[Jay Carney] said the president had no plans to reconsider the mandate in spite of the outcry from leaders of the Catholic Church and other religious organizations.
“This is not a decision of politics,” Carney stated. “This provides an important preventive service for people around the country and is not in any way a violation of the conscience clause.”
However, this is not the viewpoint of many legal experts who say the new mandate clearly violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).
Read the rest of the article here.
In my opinion, this is not an issue about contraception or abortion insurance, this is an issue of power. Who will stand up to the mighty federal government. No one, says Obama.
As a Lutheran, formerly in the ELCA synod, I was very disappointed to learn that ELCA has mandated insurance coverage that includes elective abortions, even for gender selection. I didn't know this, and neither did any member of UALC that I've talked to.Read a statement about this here.
“This is not a decision of politics,” Carney stated. “This provides an important preventive service for people around the country and is not in any way a violation of the conscience clause.”
However, this is not the viewpoint of many legal experts who say the new mandate clearly violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).
Read the rest of the article here.
In my opinion, this is not an issue about contraception or abortion insurance, this is an issue of power. Who will stand up to the mighty federal government. No one, says Obama.
As a Lutheran, formerly in the ELCA synod, I was very disappointed to learn that ELCA has mandated insurance coverage that includes elective abortions, even for gender selection. I didn't know this, and neither did any member of UALC that I've talked to.Read a statement about this here.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America maintains a pro-choice position for fetuses that are aborted before viability outside of the womb. The ELCA position statement says abortion should be an option of last resort, the ELCA community should work to reduce the need for elective abortions, and that as a community, "the number of induced abortions is a source of deep concern to this church. We mourn the loss of life that God has created."[47][48] The ELCA Social Statement on Abortion adds: "The church recognizes that there can be sound reasons for ending a pregnancy through induced abortion. These are the threat to a woman's physical life; when pregnancy has resulted from rape, incest or sexual violence; and fetal abnormalities incompatible with life.[49] The church opposes legal restrictions on abortion and provides health-care benefits to its employees that cover elective abortions. Some hospitals affiliated with the church perform elective abortions.[50] Wikipedia based on ELCA.orghttp://www.elca.org/What-We-Believe/Social-Issues/Social-Statements/Abortion.aspx
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Pigmentocracy and shadeism is world wide
Note to readers: I was asked to research the topic of why among people of color in every culture the darker are often lower, socio-economic class. I haven't spent a lot of time on this, but here's my opinion.
Although I don't like President Obama as a leader because of his regressive 19th century based social and economic policies where citizens are considered pawns and tools of the state, there are three positive cultural check marks in his column as a role model for American blacks. 1) He is educated and employed and thus a positive role model for young men who may find glamor and self-esteem in a gansta life style. 2) He is married to the mother of his children, and lack of marriage of their parents is the number one reason for poverty among children, whether black or white. 3) He did not use skin tone in selecting a wife. This is a huge plus for darker skinned, African American women, and certainly can't hurt him at the polls.
He's one of the few high profile blacks in American culture of any age, time, income, or profession who is married to a woman darker than himself. When you analyze that, it's not hard to figure out why. He was raised in a white culture, by his white mother and grandparents, and in that culture any black person, regardless of skin tone is simply . . . black. Not so for black men raised culturally with African Americans. For them, a lighter skinned girl friend/wife is preferred.
And this isn't an exclusively American phenomenon, although some would like to brand us with that and link it to years of racial mixing with the slave masters. See this biased link whose authors apparently have never traveled. Sorry folks, that war ended in 1865 and black men are still choosing women of light skin tone to be the mother of their children. It also happens in Brazil, Haiti, Dominican Republic, and also in India and many Asian countries. It was also apparent among Russians, where many Russians were ethnically part Asian or descendant from people who had worked the land for centuries. In India, the caste system is also a system of color. In China, before the Communist revolution, the higher better educated classes were very light skinned. The Laplanders of several Scandinavian countries are all darker and of lower social/economic class than the majority Swedes, Finns, Norwegians and Russians with whom they share citizenship.
It's called "pigmentocracy." My theory is it's roots are in labor--the darker a woman was, the more likely her family worked in the sun; they were laborers, slaves, serfs, servants. The freedom to choose a spouse based on relationship or love is just a little blip of recent history even for Europeans and Americans. If a man's wife and children didn't labor in the fields or mines, he had status. For most of history, it's been an economic decision made early in life for the betterment of the family. If you can't change your own skin color, you can change that of your children by selecting a fair skinned wife. Now it's an economic decision made by media--have you ever seen the women hosts of Spanish/Hispanic TV? Or even the desk clerk in a hotel in San Antonio compared to the maid who cleans your room?
I've seen one exception and that's the Berbers of North Africa which DNA studies have shown to be Eurasian, not Arab, not African. I used to help in an ESL class a lovely hazel eyed, fair skinned Berber from North Africa who told me they came to the U.S. due to extreme discrimination in her home country. Although they were Muslims in a Muslim country, they were fairer skinned than the majority. They were the last educated and the last hired and they wanted a better life for their children. There is speculation that Berbers descended in part from white European slaves, so whether it's true doesn't really matter if that was the perception.
This woman wants to be the first female President of Mexico. Look at the color of her skin. If she were more Indian, more ethnic with darker skin, instead of European, what would her chances be?
Although I don't like President Obama as a leader because of his regressive 19th century based social and economic policies where citizens are considered pawns and tools of the state, there are three positive cultural check marks in his column as a role model for American blacks. 1) He is educated and employed and thus a positive role model for young men who may find glamor and self-esteem in a gansta life style. 2) He is married to the mother of his children, and lack of marriage of their parents is the number one reason for poverty among children, whether black or white. 3) He did not use skin tone in selecting a wife. This is a huge plus for darker skinned, African American women, and certainly can't hurt him at the polls.
And this isn't an exclusively American phenomenon, although some would like to brand us with that and link it to years of racial mixing with the slave masters. See this biased link whose authors apparently have never traveled. Sorry folks, that war ended in 1865 and black men are still choosing women of light skin tone to be the mother of their children. It also happens in Brazil, Haiti, Dominican Republic, and also in India and many Asian countries. It was also apparent among Russians, where many Russians were ethnically part Asian or descendant from people who had worked the land for centuries. In India, the caste system is also a system of color. In China, before the Communist revolution, the higher better educated classes were very light skinned. The Laplanders of several Scandinavian countries are all darker and of lower social/economic class than the majority Swedes, Finns, Norwegians and Russians with whom they share citizenship.
It's called "pigmentocracy." My theory is it's roots are in labor--the darker a woman was, the more likely her family worked in the sun; they were laborers, slaves, serfs, servants. The freedom to choose a spouse based on relationship or love is just a little blip of recent history even for Europeans and Americans. If a man's wife and children didn't labor in the fields or mines, he had status. For most of history, it's been an economic decision made early in life for the betterment of the family. If you can't change your own skin color, you can change that of your children by selecting a fair skinned wife. Now it's an economic decision made by media--have you ever seen the women hosts of Spanish/Hispanic TV? Or even the desk clerk in a hotel in San Antonio compared to the maid who cleans your room?
Shadeism from Shadeism on Vimeo.
This video was made by a woman whose family is from from Sri Lanka. But notice the young black women shown on this documentary, who apparently haven't seen the pigmentocracy among their own people! The young Bangladeshi woman had discrimination even among her own siblings and parents. If it's in your own family--do you really want to condemn dead colonialism and society years later? In south Asia, colorism existed long before the British arrived as one gentleman observed. The Hip Hop culture really promotes shadeism. Ironically, Nayanni (film maker's name, I think) will get better attention and coverage because she is light skinned.I've seen one exception and that's the Berbers of North Africa which DNA studies have shown to be Eurasian, not Arab, not African. I used to help in an ESL class a lovely hazel eyed, fair skinned Berber from North Africa who told me they came to the U.S. due to extreme discrimination in her home country. Although they were Muslims in a Muslim country, they were fairer skinned than the majority. They were the last educated and the last hired and they wanted a better life for their children. There is speculation that Berbers descended in part from white European slaves, so whether it's true doesn't really matter if that was the perception.
This woman wants to be the first female President of Mexico. Look at the color of her skin. If she were more Indian, more ethnic with darker skin, instead of European, what would her chances be?
The Earth Charter and Agenda 21
The differences. The similarities.
"Unlike Agenda 21, which is a document that provides a framework for hard laws, the Earth Charter is a set of principles that underscore and facilitate the strengthening and implementation of those laws. The Charter “was drafted in coordination with a hard law treaty that is designed to provide an integrated legal framework for all environment development law and policy.” This hard law treaty is called the International Covenant on Environment and Development and is being prepared by the Commission on Environmental Law at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a behemoth agency which oversees 700+ governmental agencies worldwide. Interestingly, Maurice Strong is on the IUCN’s Board of Directors." (Link)
Lots of religious language in the environment worshipers. The Charter sounds like the Gospel; and the Agenda 21 the Law. In the old days, it was just plain old pantheism.
"Unlike Agenda 21, which is a document that provides a framework for hard laws, the Earth Charter is a set of principles that underscore and facilitate the strengthening and implementation of those laws. The Charter “was drafted in coordination with a hard law treaty that is designed to provide an integrated legal framework for all environment development law and policy.” This hard law treaty is called the International Covenant on Environment and Development and is being prepared by the Commission on Environmental Law at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a behemoth agency which oversees 700+ governmental agencies worldwide. Interestingly, Maurice Strong is on the IUCN’s Board of Directors." (Link)
Lots of religious language in the environment worshipers. The Charter sounds like the Gospel; and the Agenda 21 the Law. In the old days, it was just plain old pantheism.
The Earth Charter is the outcome of a process initiated in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Eight years later, in 2000, it was promulgated in Paris by UNESCO. According to Boff (2006) it is intended that the Charter will eventually be added to the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Charter is an attempt to expound a global ethic for the twentyfirst century based upon sustainability and the interconnectedness of all on planet earth – all living entities and the systems upon which all life depends. It makes and invites commitments to ecological integrity, social and economic justice, democracy, non-violence and peace. A sense of the tone of the Charter can be glimpsed from its Preamble. . .
British Journal of Religious Education
Another Health Care plan gone awry
“Dietrich Bonhoeffer rebuked German Christians who stood silent while Hitler intimidated church leaders to accept the socialist, anti-life agenda of the National Socialist Workers Party (NAZI).
The New York Times reported Oct. 10, 1933:
"Nazi Plan to Kill Incurables to End Pain; German Religious Groups Oppose Move...The Ministry of Justice...explaining the Nazi aims regarding the German penal code, today announced its intentions to authorize physicians to end the sufferings of the incurable patient...in the interest of true humanity.
The Catholic newspaper Germania hastened to observe: 'The Catholic faith binds the conscience of its followers not to accept this method.'...In Lutheran circles, too, life is regarded as something that God alone can take...
Euthanasia...has become a widely discussed word in the Reich...No life still valuable to the State will be wantonly destroyed."
Bonhoeffer warned Germans not to slip into the cult of Führer (leader) worship, as he could turn out to be a Verführer (mis-leader, seducer).”
From American Minute
Orothodoxy Today
The New York Times reported Oct. 10, 1933:
"Nazi Plan to Kill Incurables to End Pain; German Religious Groups Oppose Move...The Ministry of Justice...explaining the Nazi aims regarding the German penal code, today announced its intentions to authorize physicians to end the sufferings of the incurable patient...in the interest of true humanity.
The Catholic newspaper Germania hastened to observe: 'The Catholic faith binds the conscience of its followers not to accept this method.'...In Lutheran circles, too, life is regarded as something that God alone can take...
Euthanasia...has become a widely discussed word in the Reich...No life still valuable to the State will be wantonly destroyed."
Bonhoeffer warned Germans not to slip into the cult of Führer (leader) worship, as he could turn out to be a Verführer (mis-leader, seducer).”
From American Minute
Orothodoxy Today
Saturday, February 04, 2012
Try Before You Buy?
"In spite of the social pressure, a growing number of brave singles are making the promise to wait. Still others who have been sexually active in the past are committing to what might be called a "second virginity." Regardless of their history, they're making a commitment to start over, to live as "virgins" until they make a lifelong commitment in marriage.
The reason is not that they've got crooked teeth, bad complexions, or don't bathe. Rather, they're choosing to wait because they believe the Judeo-Christian tradition holds the best insight on building strong relationships and durable marriages."
Salvo Magazine - Try Before You Buy? by Greg Koukl
The reason is not that they've got crooked teeth, bad complexions, or don't bathe. Rather, they're choosing to wait because they believe the Judeo-Christian tradition holds the best insight on building strong relationships and durable marriages."
Salvo Magazine - Try Before You Buy? by Greg Koukl
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