Abort a disabled baby?

One of my proudest moments—guest blogger Milton

One of the proudest moments of my life was walking into the voting booth, twice, and not voting for Barack Obama. You see, unlike so many other blacks, I take my faith and the welfare of my family and country seriously.. Unlike most blacks... who put race above all else, I try to live by the words of Dr. King. I choose to judge people not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. With these established priorities in my life I proudly and willingly voted for a person who reflected my values.

Today we are witnessing perhaps the most blatant and concerted destruction of our Republic by people who lack virtue, decency and certainly a love of country. As Democrats led by Reid, Pelosi and Obama rape and pillage our country bringing it to a third world status, while I pray and work hard to prevent this from happening, if America does go in this direction I take some solace in the fact that I will be able to look my grandchildren in the eyes and tell them that for them and the nation, grandpa stood on the correct side of history and remained true to my faith, values and that I fought the good fight.

Used with permission, from BQI Facebook (Black Quill and Ink).

What is offensive at the White House?

“In the Obama Administration, you can completely botch the Obamacare launch, run guns to Mexican drug gangs, let four people die in Benghazi on your watch, commit egregious transgressions against freedom of the press, and break the law by targeting political opposition with IRS, call for a race war against white people and still keep your job. But insult Valerie Jarrett in an anonymous tweet? Clean out your desk.”

Gay Patriot Blog

When Barack Obama did tell the truth--2001

“Politicians are said to speak the truth only by mistake. As his political career took off unexpectedly, Obama subsequently hid his views on redistribution, except in unguarded moments, such as “you didn’t build that” or “spreading the wealth around is good.” But on that day in 2001 in a Chicago public radio station, Obama candidly expounded his political and social philosophy as shaped by his critical-legal studies professors at Harvard and his experience as a community organizer in Chicago.

The 2001 “Obama Raw” interview remains the one definitive Obama soliloquy on the Constitution, redistribution, and economic justice.”

Radio audio here.

Forbes article here.

Lack of insurance doesn’t make people sick

There may be an insurance gap, gender gap or access gap for the mentally ill, but that isn't what made them ill. There may be some people who need cholesterol or high blood pressure medicine and don't get it because they bought groceries instead, but that's not what caused their high cholesterol. There may be men going to bath houses who don't know there is a drug out there for the disease they are about to plant inside the anus or mouth of another man, but it isn't ignorance or poverty that is causing their behavior.

Only capitalism can lift the masses out of poverty in developing countries

“Outside of the financial sectors in the United States and Europe, capitalism is more prominent than ever. Country after country is reducing the scale of its public enterprises and expanding the scope of the private sector. For the first time in almost 70 years, Mexico has opened it oil and other energy sectors to greater participation by private firms. The new leaders of China have expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of public enterprises, and have called for greater participation by private firms in many sectors, including financial markets.

The formerly mainly socialist government of the very poor nation Rwanda has been encouraging private companies to increase its role in the limited landlocked Rwanda economy. India is trying to reduce its many labor market and other regulations so that direct foreign investments will increase in India, and its own private firms will expand their activities. On the other side of the ledger, nations like Venezuela that has conducted a war on the private sector has seen poverty grow and its economy stagnate.

The reason behind these pro-capitalist activities is that more and more countries have realized that despite is many flaws, capitalism is the only system yet devised that brings hope of lifting the masses out of poverty and creating a robust middle class. Most people realize this, and have prevented political leaders from using the reaction against capitalism brought on by the financial crisis to try to radically transform a system that has brought so much wealth and health to the peoples of the world.”

Becker-Posner blog

The cost of college today compared to “my-day”

2013-14 Tuition, Fees, and Housing Costs for Manchester University (college) where I attended in 1957-58 for about $1,000.  

Tuition: $27,000; Fees: $920; Room: $5,500; Board: $3,750 (Full meal plan);  Total Direct Costs: $37,170 (about $39,000 if a different dorm and food plan is selected); add books, travel, personal items.

So why is college over 4x (adjusted for inflation) more than when I went?

• there were no government loans and few scholarships in 1957
• there were minimal amenities in 1957--no natatorium, no rec center, no plush dormitories--our entire dorm shared one phone
• there are many more regulations and mandates from the government in 2013 to add to costs
•   there are more costly scientific and technology equipment affecting everything from library to ordering food to tracking admissions in 2013
• there were stiffer entrance requirements in 1957 and many students in 2013 shouldn’t be in college.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324549004579068992834736138

http://www.becker-posner-blog.com/2013/10/why-does-college-cost-so-much-posner.html

“The curved glass wall of Haist Commons, a dining room and gathering space, is the most prominent addition to the building. Large open areas, balcony overlooks, and extensive use of exterior and interior glass walls help create bright, inviting spaces, connecting activity areas visually and providing views of the campus. The renovation brought the campus bookstore back into the union, allowing for combined staffing with the mailroom. The bookstore also shares a double sided fireplace with The Oaks Lounge.”

This student union was built in 1963; there wasn’t one in 1957. Even small church schools have to be competitive with amenities.

Always. It’s always about him.

Obama is twice as large as JFK in this official photograph.

• Gutsy call: President Obama disgracefully honors himself in speech, campaigns on Memorial Day
• All the president’s ego: conservatives mock Obama’s insertion of his name into other presidential bios
• Narcissist in chief: Obama honors Neil Armstrong with picture of himself
• President Obama marks end of combat operations in Iraq with another portrait of himself
• All about him: Obama’s birthday tweet to Biden is a pic of himself
• Narcissist in chief: President Obama honors Rosa Parks anniversary with picture of himself
• Disgrace: President Obama commemorates Pearl Harbor attack with photo of himself
• Narcissist in chief: Obama maintains laser-like focus on himself at Inouye memorial
• Obama’s narcissism during Inouye service even noted by Slate; White House posts Inouye photo starring Obama

Link to the links

Statistics run wild

Socialized or single payer health insurance will not change some health problems that are unique to the United States, says N. Gregory Mankiw in the New York Times.

For some clarity about life expectancy and health care let's look at research before Obamacare became the lightning rod. The murder rate, particularly among young black men, the obesity rate and lifestyle choices, traffic accidents, and our high immigration rates that include people with poor health, might indicate social patterns that need addressing, but they are not functions of the health care system.

Unfortunately, this bit of advice on health insurance was ignored. “Any reform should carefully focus on this group to avoid disrupting the vast majority for whom the system is working. We do not nationalize an industry simply because a small percentage of the work force is unemployed. Similarly, we should be wary of sweeping reforms of our health system if they are motivated by the fact that a small percentage of the population is uninsured.”

http://www.becker-posner-blog.com/2009/06/health-care-becker.html

"A study published in Lancet Oncology in 2007 calculates cancer survival rates for both men and women in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union as a whole. The study claims that the most important determinants of cancer survival are early diagnosis, early treatment, and access to the best drugs, and that the United States does very well on all three criteria. Early diagnosis helps survival, but it may also distort the comparisons of five or even ten-year survival rates. In any case, the calculated five-year survival rates are much better in the US: they are about 65% for both men and women, while they are much lower in the other countries, especially for men. These apparent advantages in cancer survival rates are large enough to be worth a lot to persons having access to the American health system. Several measures of the quality of life also favor the US. For example, hip and knee replacements, and cataract surgery, are far more readily available in the US than in Europe. The cancer survival and quality of life advantages enjoyed by US residents indicates that Americans get something for the large amount they spend on health care, but they do not indicate that the bang for the health buck is greater in the US, or even that the US health delivery system is reasonably efficient."

Obama’s insurance fix

Who is the bigot?

If you have the progressive view of marriage (it is an emotional attachment approved and defined by many in the 21st century), and I have the traditional view (it is approved by God and all of history and cultures), are you then a bigot if you think the 21st century marriage should be limited to two adults, but not three or four, or one adult and a minor, or a brother and sister, or three sisters, or five cousins, or a grandfather and granddaughter? If it is an emotional attachment and the people are committed and need the tax benefits, who are you to judge, if I can’t judge?  If my belief in traditional marriage doesn’t matter, why does yours?  Is it unfair for those with a different view to call you be a bigot because you deny them their loving relationship with societal approval?

You can Google “polyamory” and find many websites of people looking for your participation and approval.  They are using the same argument about civil and government rights and societal approval you are.  Many African and Muslim cultures approve and encourage child brides, as well as the genital mutilation of young girls as the threshold for marriage. (The men think they’ll be less likely to be infected by disease if they marry a young virgin.

Tightwad tips I don’t use

I don’t know if anyone remembers the book byAmy Dacyczyn (sounds like decision), “The tightwad Gazette” (1993).  I was looking through it this morning while I rode on my exercycle watching TV (I was multi-tasking, but had to stop to write this.) Here are two I won’t do. 

1) Turn the return envelopes you don’t need inside out and use the plain side.  At the cost of a box of envelopes (and the fact that few people even mail things these days), this sounded like a huge waste of time, and time is money too. What I have done is buy a box of Christmas cards at 36 for a dollar, and just use the envelopes (since we make our own, we don’t need commercial cards).

2) Empty the vacuum cleaner bag by opening the bottom and reuse it by carefully stapling the bottom glued fold. Whoa!  I remember emptying the cloth bag on a newspaper of the old Hoover an aunt passed along to us in 1960.  The amount of dust that is reintroduced to the air (or your lungs) just isn’t worth it.  Besides, the cat hair in the bag would make this difficult.  Amy really doesn’t describe how to get the dust out of the used bag.

I never took a photo of the Hoover Aunt Marg gave us, but it sort of looked like this one I found on the Internet.  Until you actually do a search on the images, you have no idea how many models there are. I think we might have given the old Hoover to our son for his first apartment. I’m sure it was over 50 years old by that time.

Human hair is a natural deer repellant—just thought I’d throw that in just in case you’re saving money by giving the family home hair cuts.

Big oops!

An openly homosexual teenager, who was given a position as an “adviser” to Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton and honored by President Barack Obama at a White House “gay pride” dinner, has been indicted on more than a dozen counts of sexual misconduct with a minor under the age of 15.

Caleb Laieski, 18, has been nationally recognized for his advocacy, after overcoming anti-gay bullying that led him to drop out of high school. He was prominently featured in an anti-bullying documentary, earned a gig acting as a youth and diversity advocate for Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton's office, and even met with President Obama and Vice President Biden to talk about LGBT youth issues.
Recently, however, Laieski was indicted by a grand jury on the sex-crime charges, in a case in which Laieski's alleged to also be a victim.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/20131118anti-bullying-activist-indicted-sex-abuse.html

November 22, 1963

“Will we ever know the truth about Nov. 22, 1963,”  they ask? Why yes. Lee Harvey Oswald, a Communist American recently of the USSR, shot and killed John F. Kennedy in a motorcade in Dallas. The media jumped on the idea immediately that it was right wing nuts and that much hasn't changed in 50 years of public tragedies. That Sunday when I was watching TV, I saw Jack Ruby kill Oswald, the only person who could explain why. And the conspiracy theories have been hatching regularly since. This gives the perps their 10 minutes of fame and a book deal. It's a cottage industry.

Got insurance?

Friday Family photo—a rerun

http://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2006/07/2673-friday-family-photo-thirty-years.html

The Bruces and the Bruces, 1976, Huntington Beach, California

Naked hypocrisy in the Senate

Today Harry Reid wants to squash Republican's right to filibuster, but he had a different tune in 2005.

"The filibuster is far from a “procedural gimmick.” It is part of the fabric of this institution. It was well known in colonial legislatures, and it is an integral part of our country’s 217 years of history.

The first filibuster in the U.S. Congress happened in 1790. It was used by lawmakers from Virginia and South Carolina who were trying to prevent Philadelphia from hosting the first Congress.

Since 1790, the filibuster has been employed hundreds and hundreds of times.

Senators have used it to stand up to popular presidents. To block legislation. And yes – even to stall executive nominees.

The roots of the filibuster can be found in the Constitution and in the Senate rules. . . “

Obama and Biden too supported the filibuster in 2005 when it benefitted them.  Biden,

“…I say to my friends on the Republican side, you may own the field right now, but you won’t own it forever. And I pray God when the Democrats take back control we don’t make the kind of naked power grab you are doing.”

Senator Obama in 2005:

"Everyone in this chamber knows that if the majority chooses to end the filibuster—if they choose to change the rules and put an end to democratic debate—then the fighting and the bitterness and the gridlock will only get worse."

Put Beth Moore’s new book on your Christmas list

Do you have some Beth Moore fans on your Christmas list? "Whispers of hope; 10 weeks of devotional prayer" (B&H Publishing Group, 2013, $14.99) might be a good choice. I just received my copy, and I really like the plan. You remember how Beth loves assignments and workbooks? With each of the 70 days, there are assigned scripture, Beth's personal and anecdotal musings, and then pages with 4 line...s each for your own thoughts on Praise, Repentance, Acknowledgment, Intercession, Supplication for Self, and Equipping. Whether you write something down isn't as important in my view as the nudge to include these areas in your prayer life.

"I'm certain of two things: prayerless lives are powerless lives, and prayerful lives are powerful lives." Beth Moore

                        

Presidents’ famous words

Breakfast casserole in a crock pot

I’m not sure why this would be any easier than baking it in the oven, but maybe some people want to sleep in.

Ingredients:

• 1 bag 26 oz. frozen hash browns
• 12 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon ground mustard
• 1 16 oz. roll sausage maple, sage or regular sausage.
• Salt and pepper
• 16 oz. bag shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

• 1. Spray crock pot and evenly spread hash browns at the bottom.
• 2. Crack 12 eggs in a large bowl.
• 3. Mix well (and slowly) using a whisk.
• 4. Add the milk.
• 5. Go ahead and sprinkle in the ground mustard.
• 6. Add salt and lots of fresh pepper. Mix well and set aside.
• 7. Cook the sausage on high heat, drain and set aside.
• 8. Add sausage on top of hash browns.
• 9. Add cheese.
• 10. Mix it up well.
• 11. Pour the egg mixture over everything in the crock pot. Using a wood spoon, even everything out so it's spread evenly.
• 12. Turn the crock pot on low for 6-8 hours. Some fun variations of this recipe. Before cooking (during prep) you can add: chunks of sourdough bread, diced chiles, salsa, diced green onions