Funny moment during a sad event

My husband and I were drafted into ushering at a funeral the other night at our church. The congregation was going to be asked to sing (some rather unsingable tunes as it turned out), so the pastor asked us to suggest that people sit near the front, close to the family members. My husband speaks softly, and to be kind, sometimes I can't understand him. He said to one couple, 70-ish, "We're requesting that you sit near the front." "What'd he say?" the husband whispered to the wife, and she responded, "He said crazy people should sit near the front." I overheard this and saw her rolling her eyes, so I darted up the aisle and repeated the correct instructions.

Ohio Pro-Life event

"Many local churches and anti-abortion groups will take part in Life Chain events on Sunday, Oct. 4.

Supporters will line up along East Stroop Road in Kettering from 2 to 3:30 p.m. and form a line nearly 2 ½ miles in length.

This national, annual event draws 1,800 people from more than 70 area churches and organizations in the Miami Valley each year." Dayton Daily News

A sadness too big to measure

I was delighted to run into my old art class buddy at the book shop today. The class dissolved about 3 years ago, and so the three of us who used to go to lunch together, or enjoy an occasional afternoon movie or art show, had lost touch. After the hug--No, she wasn't painting anymore, Yes, her husband was doing better, and did I know her 52 year old daughter died this summer. I almost couldn't catch my breath. They were preparing to go spend a few days with her, to provide transportation to and from surgery, and keep her company, and then got the call. Irregular heart rate--I think she'd been scheduled for an ablation. My friend had returned to the central Ohio area over 30 years ago to care for her own mother, and I think she had some comfort as she entered her 80s that her daughter was just in the next state. Now it's the numbing grief plus the insecurity. All the whys and what ifs. They will be moving to Pennsylvania to be nearer their son.

Fast and fluttery are more serious than slow. If like me, you've always had an irregular heart rate (shortness of breath, fatigue, dizziness and lightheadedness), and you've learned to live with it, or just wait till it goes away, it's not a heart attack you need to fear, but a stroke. I'm always surprised when I read that A-fib is not life threatening; it certainly was for my friend's daughter. When the rhythym is restored and the electrical charge reconnects, there may be a clot waiting to be pushed through.

This chance encounter today was a kick in the pants for me to have mine checked again. Technically, my ablation didn't work--all the pulmonary veins around my heart had been doing it wrong so long, they just ignored the fact that the extra circuit was dead and gone. It's time to stick that 30-day monitor back on. Yuk.

Do what you can; let God do what you can't

That's what Blake Haxton said, a Freshman at OSU this fall who had both legs amputated in the spring.

Blake Haxton's story is amazing. In the spring his legs were amputated to save him from necrotizing fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria); he was not expected to live. His doctor said he'd never seen anyone that sick who had survived. Although the Haxtons were not members of our church, many days our whole community was praying for him and his family because teens in our community knew him through school and sports. His father has a journal at The Caring Bridge, and on Sept. 23 reported that Blake had entered OSU as a Freshman. The faith of the family has been an inspiration to all.

I haven't been able to embed it, but here's an Interview with Blake's Dad.

Who are the Ohio uninsured?

Today I saw a statistic at a progressive site that reported 1.3 million adults and children in Ohio don't have health insurance. Notice--that's people, not citizens. And if Ohio does have about 11.5 million people that's about 10%. A very small number for which to upend what we have by ramming health care bills down our throats which our Congress and Senate seem unable to read or explain. Just this morning I was listening to a report about a committee where it was just roughed in--no details, no CBO report, but would be added to the mix. So I looked a few minutes and found this report from Buckeye Institute written in mid-2007 which begins with the media depiction of poor people without insurance. The writer doesn't even address the illegals we have in Ohio. It's a bit wordy, but addresses the key points: 1) within the uninsured stats, are those uninsured for only a few months; 2) some who have incomes that could afford it chose not to carry insurance; 3) young adults, the healthiest segment, have high uninsured rates (and in my opinion are naive, but that's another blog); many poor are eligible for gov't programs, but don't sign up.

“While there are certainly a good number of poor people among the uninsured, what is left largely unexplored is the fact that a large portion of the uninsured choose to go without insurance. And, in fact, it is likely that a majority of the uninsured are only uninsured for a few months. The people who choose to go without insurance or who are between insurance plans do not fit the media stereotype, but they fill the ranks of the uninsured in far greater numbers than do the families living in poverty who want insurance but cannot afford it.

Who would choose to go without insurance? The simple answer is that those who do not see a value in health insurance choose to forgo purchasing a policy. People who are in good health and do not see any reason to pay a monthly premium for a policy they are unlikely to use may make a choice to use their money elsewhere. Young adults in Ohio, the healthiest segment of the population, are uninsured at rates over twice as high as other segments of the population.

People with money also choose to forgo insurance. Almost one-third of Ohioans who are uninsured make incomes at twice the federal poverty level. Sixteen percent of the uninsured have incomes at three hundred percent of the federal poverty level. It is likely that the vast majority of these people, if they really wanted insurance, could afford it.

Surprisingly, the poor also choose to go without insurance. In Ohio, the state offers Medicaid to any child living in a family below 200% of the federal poverty level. Many families choose not to sign up for this program, however. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, roughly 71% of Ohio's uninsured children are eligible for Medicaid but are not signed up for the program. The Governor is using the large number of uninsured children in the state to push for an expansion of Medicaid. As these numbers clearly show, though, most of the children are already eligible for Medicaid, they are just not using it.

The problem of current plan (Obamacare) is addressed at this article on the folly of expansion.

Blogs coming and going

Today I've taken down links to Doyle and Gekko, both of whom I met on Usenet about 14 years ago. Don't know if they have stopped blogging, or changed URLs and didn't let me know, but they're gone. I added Dana from Chicago who has an interesting cooking site with nutrition fun facts, and Mary Baker, one of the moms who appeared on Glenn Beck this week (there were 3 with blogs, but I didn't catch the others' URLs), and Thifty Rebecca, who seems to have about as many blogs as I do, but this is the one to which I'll link. I occasionally shop at Thrifts, but she's really good at the accessorizing. I just never got into wearing jewelry, belts, cute shoes, etc. but I can see that makes a difference. A few rings and the occasional pin is about it for me. No ear lobes to speak of (although they do grow with age) and the necklaces make my skin itch. I added Namaste a few weeks ago.

Please visit my new links and say hello.

Obama's War on the Economy

He may not be following through on his campaign promises about Afghanistan, but if you look back on his 2-3 years of campaigning for the presidency, his war on the economy is going well. Just look at the September job figures. Some of you aren't old enough to remember the transition from the Carter economy to the Reagan economy. The press really lambasted Reagan for not pulling us out sooner with his tax cuts from the disastrous Carter years (Carter can't be blamed, however, for the millions of women who rushed into the workforce in the 70s). Even when the economy recovered, they were critical of Reagan. For Obama, it's just warm fuzzies, and happy reporting on the jobs that haven't been lost. That's also why they are so careful to say the economy is the "worst in 26 years" because that makes it 1983 rather than 1980 or 81. And Obama just continues to blame Bush--for everything--Burris (D-IL) even blamed Bush for Chicago losing out to Rio, rather than acknowledging that Obama's constant denigration of the U.S. plays well in Europe even if his narcissism doesn't.

And most of us don't remember the Great Depression, but if you're my age, you certainly heard your parents talk about it. Obama's using FDR's playbook (with Saul Alinsky updates and Rahm Emanuel's advice for using a crisis to your advantage).

". . . during the Great Depression, the Statists successfully launched a counterrevolution that radically and fundamentally altered the nature of American society. President Franklin Roosevelt and an overwhelmingly Democratic congress, through an array of federal projects, entitlements, taxes, and regulations known as the New Deal, breached the Constitution's firewalls." In those days, Roosevelt used the Supreme Court (first packed it, then replaced retirees with those who believed as he did) to limit the freedom of Americans, as administrative agencies were created "at a dizzying pace, increasing [the government's] control over economic activity and, hence, individual liberty.

[the federal government] used taxation not merely to fund constitutionally legitimate governmental activities, but also to redistribute wealth, finance welfare programs, set prices and production limits, create huge public works programs, and establish pension and unemployment programs. Roosevelt used his new power to expand political alliances and create electoral constituencies--unions, farmers, senior citizens, and ethnic groups. From this era forward, the Democratic Party and the federal government would become inextricably intertwined, and the Democratic Party would become as dependent on federal power for its sustenance as the governmental dependents it would create. . . Ironically, industrial expansion resulting from WWII eventually ended the Great Depression, not the New Deal." (Mark R. Levin, Liberty and tyranny, Threshold Editions, 2009, pp. 6-7)

So if FDR is any model, don't expect recovery to the levels of the Bush years anytime soon. We're already in a war, so that won't help the economy; we now have a government "packed" with regulatory czars which has further diminished the power of the courts and Congress; we already know the stimulus package (ARRA) hasn't done a thing; plus people of my generation and younger, have been raised to wait for the government to do something, an attitude our parents and grandparents didn't have. Even the seniors objecting to the healthcare take-over and showing up at tea parties don't seem to grasp what Medicare is--only that even with all the fraud, graft and waste, it seems to be working for them.

During the last 30 years the government has "out-sourced" billions to non-profits and private "partnerships" rather than appear as it really is . . . bloated. . . and increasingly, non-profit is just another word for Democrat. The ACORN mortgage agencies (variety of names) "help" is a perfect example--they put the people into the mortgages with government help, and now are running the foreclosure workshops with government grants to help them refinance. Sweet deal.

This will be his most successful war.

It’s not America anymore

Black Cop: "If I told you once to take [poster with Obama-as-Joker] down and you put it back up then I can charge you with whatever I want to charge you with, okay?" [snip]

White Male Protester: "This used to be America."

Black Cop: "Well it ain't no mo', okay?"



Maybe the President could invite them over for a beer--this sounds a lot more serious that what happened to Gates.

HT Baldilocks

On treating the uninsured

Linda Halderman MD sees a lot of women in her rural practice--some without insurance are subsidized by the cash payments of the esthetics clients.

"Upon questioning Sherry S., a pretty 46-year-old seeking wrinkle relief, I learned that four of her immediate family members had been diagnosed with breast or colon cancer before the age of 50. Alarmed, I asked why she had not had the recommended screening mammogram for more than four years.


She said that she knew already that her risk for developing breast cancer was likely higher than that of most women.

"But I don't have insurance," she replied.

A screening mammogram could be obtained for about $90 and was discounted or free at local facilities every October for "Breast Cancer Awareness Month."

She smiled when I proposed a deal: if she were to get a screening mammogram within sixty days of her treatment, I would offer a discount on what she paid me for cosmetic services.

"I'll think about it," she said, then shelled out over $400 for BotoxTM injections that took me ten minutes to administer.

Five months later, when she returned for her next wrinkle treatment, she reported that she still had not obtained a mammogram."

Read her observations on those who don't have insurance.

Karen starts a business

At her blog, Some have hats, she explains it:

So by the end of the month, Chris and I will own a small (very small) business. A friend asked me if we'll be hiring and I laughed the Big Laugh. We will not be doing any firing either. We will be working. Those jobs that usually go to college kids? We'll be doing them. The jobs that go to people who have families to feed? We'll be doing them, too. Because we've got kids to feed and the business is only breaking even.

Now, we're going to work very hard to try to make the business profitable, but in the present economy ... with unemployment numbers continuing to rise ... it's going to be hard to find people with money to spend. So, no we will not be hiring.

You know why else? Because the Tyrant-in-Chief is going to sock us with a penalty if we don't provide health care for our employees. Here's some simple math: business is breaking even. We (a) provide health care for new employees or (b) get socked with a penalty ... then business is losing money. Soon, we'd have to fire the skeletal staff we have. Which means -- are you with me so far -- the unemployment figures go up even higher.

I have all sorts of ideas for how to expand the business, which would mean we could hire some of the many unemployed people, but if we expand enough to make a significant profit, we'll find ourself in the "spread the wealth" tax bracket, wherein we'd probably make about the same amount of money that we would if we did much less work. (Who is John Galt?) You can read the rest of the story at Some have hats.

Do babies matter in academia?

Here’s the rationale behind the class for National Work and Family Month at Ohio State.

The career aspirations and trajectories of men and women PhDs diverge strongly in academic institutions, with men over-represented in the professoriate and women over-represented in non-tenure-track teaching, administrative, and support positions. Mason's research links those differing trajectories to family constraints, and suggests ways that institutions of higher learning can evolve to retain faculty and staff talent, and provide satisfying work opportunities for everyone.

What is this really saying? That if a woman (or man) choses to limit her career or job “aspiration” to aspire to be a hands on Mom or Dad instead of dropping the kid at day-care or grandma’s, then that’s a trajectory, or a constraint, that suggests Ohio State needs to do something.

I returned to work in the late 1970s and found OSU quite friendly for part-timers like me, and I enjoyed sampling a number of different positions until I found a fabulous, full time, tenure-track position in the Veternary Medicine Library. Nothing I did between 1977 and 1983 was wasted--I used it all.

This isn't the 1950s. When women don't move up in academe, it's probably for the same reasons that men of similar training and qualifications don't.

• Department politics.
• Failure to relocate.
• Poor selection of a specialty.
• Personality.
• Lack of desire to make the personal sacrifices.
• Poor networking.
• Lack of social skills.
• Little desire for either administration positions or required research.
• Family responsibilities are more interesting or more demanding.
• Poor publication record.
• Substance abuse or other health problems.

Letterman's liaisons with staff revealed

Nothing will happen to Letterman, but the extortionist (also CBS employee) will probably go to jail. Letterman will continue in his job as late night molder of the culture and character of Americans with off color jokes and hypocrisy.

Update: This story in WaPo contains zero editorializing--something I've never seen in their reporting.

When the definition doesn’t fit the reality

Define SMART GROWTH: Well-planned development that protects open space and farmland, revitalizes communities, keeps housing affordable and provides more transportation ...

You know the buzz words: sustainability, community, affordability, green spaces, multiple use, stewards of the earth, carbon neutral, yada yada. It all translates into less housing for the poor and low income, and more wealth for government officials and developers.

Yes, there is a gap between blacks and whites and blacks and Hispanics when it comes to home ownership and the greening of the housing industry will set that in stone, with those on the lower end never able to catch up--unless they are part of the Chicago elite housing bureaucracy like Valerie Jarrett.

Read How Smart Growth Disadvantages African-Americans & Hispanics

Friday family photo

This has to be my all time worst school photograph and it gave my mother so much grief. I don't have a date on it, but I think it is second grade in Forreston, IL. She and dad were driving my grandparents to California to visit relatives, so my aunt came to stay with us (her children were not yet school age). She did her best, but her adorable, blonde, curly haired cherubs had short hair, and so she braided my hair the best she could. (Also I have a vague memory that I didn't have bangs when my parents left.) My mother was a meticulous creator of "French braids," a 3 part terror instrument that started at the scalp, and when she finished with me in the morning, my eye brows wouldn't drop until noon and everything was symmetrical. She explained to me one time when I was learning how to do it, that she sat behind a woman in church that had wonderful braids and analyzed how it was done (and then probably practiced on me).

Also, from the pattern on the dress, I'm guessing Mom made this one out of feed sack material--and she always told us there was nothing wrong with that, but if she'd known it was school picture day, she probably would have found something a bit nicer.

Why do Congressional Democrats want to change laws that help find terrorists?

Because they work?
Because some of them are criminals too and fear being stumbled over in an investigation?
Because they are on the side of the bad guys?

What’s your take?

"Roving wiretaps have been used for decades by law enforcement in routine narcotics cases. They reportedly were used to help thwart a plot earlier this year to blow up synagogues in Riverdale, N.Y. Business records, including bank and telephone records, can provide important leads early in a national security investigation, and they have been used to obtain evidence in numerous cases.

The value of lone wolf authority is best demonstrated by its absence in the summer of 2001. That's when FBI agents might have obtained a warrant to search the computer of Zacharias Moussaoui, often referred to as the "20th hijacker," before the 9/11 attacks—although there was no proof at the time of his arrest on an immigration violation that he was acting for a terrorist organization. But a later search of his computer revealed just that.

Rather than simply renew these vital provisions, which expire at the end of this year, some congressional Democrats want to impose requirements that would diminish their effectiveness, or add burdens to existing authorizations that would retard rather than advance our ability to gather intelligence. WSJ, Michael Mukasey, Intelligence Averts Another Attack

Certainly you can't feel safe with President Apology always chasing rainbows and a future Olympics for Chicago with the Democrats and White House czars in charge of our security!

If this is true

We’re all in trouble and I don't know about you, but I should be dead.

“. . . for every 2.2 pounds gained in weight since the age of 18, the odds of healthy survival into old age decreased by 5 percent.” British Medical Journal study, via Newsmax Health.

The research team used the Nurses' Health Study, which has gathered data from more than 120,000 female registered nurses living in 11 states since 1976. Follow-up questionnaires have been sent out every two years to update information on disease incidence and lifestyle factors.

Study participants who had reached the age of 70 and were free of major chronic disease had no major impairment of cognitive function and no major limitation of physical function were considered as examples of "successful aging," Franco said.

"In summary, this study provides new evidence that adiposity at midlife is a strong risk factor predicting a worse probability of successful survival among older women," he said. "In addition, our data suggest that maintenance of healthy weight throughout adulthood may be vital to optimal overall health at older ages."

Obama poll numbers continue to fall

And Americans think members of Congress don't understand the bills, therefore, they want to see them 2 weeks before the vote!

"Eighty-three percent (83%) say that all legislation should be posted online and available for everyone to read before Congress votes on it. Of those who want the information available, 64% say legislation should be posted in final form at least two weeks before a vote.

When it comes to health care, just 22% believe most Members of Congress will understand what’s in the legislation before they vote on it."

"On economic matters, 60% of Americans think international organizations should have less influence on U.S. economic policy, not more. Fifteen percent (15%) hold the opposite view."

So why is the Obama administration pushing for a world government to control our economy through energy policy, when we don't want it? If you voted for him, did you know this in 2008?

All figures and graphics from Rasmussen, October 1, 2009.

Non-Residential Construction Industry Worsens

The Economy Shows Minimal Signs of Stabilizing; Non-Residential Construction Industry Worsens says this report.

"Our country is in the middle of a deep recession and everyone is looking for any type of sign, data, graph, or chart to signify the end of this downward spiral. Miles•McClellan is no different in the search for answers. We have decided to share a few important economic indicators with you each month; in this, we may better understand the challenges facing us in the near future."

I don't know what a TED spread or a Baltic Dry index are, but they are the only pieces of this chart that look OK.

The map of recovery

Although I don't know if you can trust recovery.gov to tell the truth about ARRA money and what's happened to it, here's a map, even if they were lying, it's not a good picture. It's not being distributed for "shovel ready" projects, and not producing any jobs because the bureaucrats are just using it within their own agencies to clean up little pockets of problems they created under previous administrations. Just look at the "jobs" all of FDR's programs created. The fox is really in the hen house, folks.

This UNC site stopped reporting weekly updates on July 10. All done?

The White House Trifecta

Minority female slumlord. And rich. Valerie Jarrett. Just like the good old white boys from Chicago. Women! We've finally made it! Think of the real estate development if the Olympics come to Chicago!! More poor to be moved out and scattered--again--just like 20 years ago. More tax dollars down the drain.

White House Olympics crony watch.

From Change.gov: "Valerie B. Jarrett became the President and Chief Executive Officer of The Habitat Company on January 31, 2007. From November 1995 through January 31, 2007, she was the Executive Vice President of The Habitat Company. The Habitat Company is one of the nation’s premier developers and managers of residential apartments and condominiums. Habitat has developed more than 17,000 housing units and currently manages more than 20,000 units. Before joining The Habitat Company in 1995, Ms. Jarrett served for eight years in the City of Chicago government; first as Deputy Corporation Counsel for Finance and Development, then as Deputy Chief of Staff for Mayor Richard M. Daley and finally, as Commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development. Prior to her City government service, Ms. Jarrett practiced law with two private law firms."

From Chicago Tribute: "Habitat has earned $6.8 million in fees and $10.8 million in administrative expenses since the plan started in 2000, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The company also earns millions as a property manager for the CHA."


From Boston Globe's story of Jarrett's (and Obama's) slum dealings in 2008.

Campaign finance records show that six prominent developers - including Jarrett, Davis, and Rezko - collectively contributed more than $175,000 to Obama's campaigns over the last decade and raised hundreds of thousands more from other donors. Rezko alone raised at least $200,000, by Obama's own accounting.

One of those contributors, Cecil Butler, controlled Lawndale Restoration, the largest subsidized complex in Chicago, which was seized by the government in 2006 after city inspectors found more than 1,800 code violations.

Butler and Davis did not respond to messages. Rezko is in prison; his lawyer did not respond to inquiries.

Jarrett, a powerful figure in the Chicago development community, agreed to be interviewed but declined to answer questions about Grove Parc, citing what she called a continuing duty to Habitat's former business partners. She did, however, defend Obama's position that public-private partnerships are superior to public housing. . .

[Obama] once told the Chicago Tribune that he had briefly considered becoming a developer of affordable housing. But after graduating from Harvard Law School in 1991, he turned down a job with Tony Rezko's development company, Rezmar, choosing instead to work at the civil rights law firm Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland, then led by Allison Davis.

The firm represented a number of nonprofit companies that were partnering with private developers to build affordable housing with government subsidies."