There is a natural way

"Dr. Thomas Hilgers’ development of the science of NaPro Technology has helped thousands of women who suffer from the cross of infertility and other reproductive health issues to find hope and healing through the morally licit practice of medicine. While mainstream medicine is quick to send infertile couples to the IVF clinic, the specialized doctors and nurses who practice the scientific and morally sound methods of Restorative Reproductive Medicine, look at the whole patient. Through the readily observable signs of the fertility cycle, which are easily learned by the woman through instruction in fertility appreciation (also known as Natural Family Planning), medical professionals are able to diagnose the woman’s underlying condition, treat it, and help restore them to health. Incidentally, the rate of pregnancies achieved after treating the infertility is higher than the success rate of IVF, and, unlike IVF no embryos are lost, destroyed, or exiled indefinitely to a frozen limbo in the process."

http://www.popepaulvi.com/about.php

Services of the National Center for Women's Health

• Infertility evaluation and treatment
• Repeated miscarriages
• Surgical treatment of endometriosis
• Prematurity Prevention Program
• Premenstrual syndrome
• Abnormal uterine bleeding
• Recurrent ovarian cysts
• Dysmenorrhea
• Postpartum depression
• Perimenopausal/menopausal care
• Polycystic ovarian disease
• Reversal of tubal ligation

An apron themed buffet

I hear sprinkles on the roof and it's getting dark. I guess the Wednesday picnic in the park will be cancelled. But had a lovely luncheon with the herb study group at the Train Station. It was a salad lunch (using herb themes) with a few desserts. It had an apron theme. Cutest table decorations and little apron shaped cookies. A special guest was (?) who owns a coffee shop (Victory?) in Marblehead and makes aprons to order.

I met an outreach librarian on my lakefront walk

On my morning walk along the lake I met Leah Schmidt the outreach librarian of Geauga County Public Library Outreach services. Sounds like a great program. She oversees the delivery and circulation of library materials to the public via the Bookmobile, Amish delivery services, homebound and outreach programming. http://www.geaugalibrary.net/newsite/component/content/article/28-gcpl-news/413-gcpl-promotes-leah-schmidt-to-head-of-outreach

“Ms. Schmidt was originally hired at GCPL as a shelver in 2013 before being promoted to a reference position in spring of 2014. Her extensive education and professional background made her a strong candidate for the Head of Outreach position when it became available this month. She holds a Master’s of Library Science and a Doctorate degree in cultural foundations of education, both from Kent State University. She also has an MBA in finance from Youngstown State University and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from The Ohio State University. Additionally, her work as an educator for Kent State, and in community service at the Trumbull Community Action Program (T-CAP) in Warren, Ohio, provides a solid foundation as Head of Outreach.”

Woman’s suffrage and the right to vote

I’ve now heard three lectures on Woman’s Suffrage and women getting the vote in 1920 at this week’s Lakeside Chautauqua Lecture series.  I used to think it was a very significant part of our history, but not any more.  Nothing really changed for women except voting rights that I can tell.  The parallel 19th and 20th century movements of women’s groups concerning property rights, education, custody of children, safer child birth, dress reform, public health, public libraries, Sunday schools for factory children, female ordination in churches, seminary attendance, temperance,  and general national movements including freedom to travel, mass production of automobiles, cooperative extension, lyceum, Chautauqua, voting in local  and municipal elections, and more technology for the home (sewing machines, indoor plumbing, electricity) had already greatly improved women’s lives by 1920. 

They did vote, by the millions, but not for women or even women’s issues for another 40-50 years. WWI had a much greater impact on women than the 1920 right to vote. Then it was the Great Depression and WWII that changed lives. Women never got to vote on abortion, or even same sex marriage.

Just to be clear, this is my opinion, not that of the lecturer. She believes the Right to Vote was very important. I'm happy I can vote--I just think that by 1920, it made little difference in the lives of women.

The Defense budget—far less than social services

Just when I found the defense percentage of the budget chart, I can't find the liberal web page (Daily Kos, I think)  that totally distorted it. Well, it's between 17-22% of the budget depending on what you count as defense (some include pensions, VA, etc.) Most of the rest is social services like Medicare, Medicaid, WIC, EITC, SNAP, Social Security, Housing, agriculture (nutrition support), 128 programs to move money from citizen A to resident B and of course, interest on the debt. Never trust a liberal chart on the economy; they take our taxes and then say it's never enough.

Hmm.  Looky there.  Federal pensions are more than health care.  Who knew?

For my readers who call me a racist because I don’t like Obama’s policies

Obama is bi-racial, raised by white grandparents in an affluent home, and attended private schools and colleges.

The other six men are not bi-racial, and their families have a long history with the race struggle in America and probably have ancestors who were slaves, unlike the President.

Receive forgiveness

Cecile Richards defends Planned Parenthood

98% of Planned Parenthood’s services to pregnant women are abortion; so how do they go on national TV and lie with impunity? It's not about women's health (a euphemism for abortion), it's about revenue. Abortions are expensive. CEO gets $1.50 for each abortion; the clinic workers have a quota to fill each month.

http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/politics/153699-exposing-the-planned-parenthood-business-model

Can you imagine the evil, demented mind of Cecile Richards? http://www.christianpost.com/news/planned-parenthood-president-cecile-richards-compares-pro-lifers-to-murderers-141968/

These videos aren’t edited to be dishonest—they edited out chit chat and clinking glasses over lunch.  The entire transcripts were published; there are 10 more coming.  These people—there are no words to describe their hate filled hearts.

ELCA pastor comes out to youth conference

"Bishop Kevin Kanouse, leader of the Northern Texas-Northern Louisiana synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, [disapproved of] the denomination’s decision to accept gay pastors who are in committed, monogamous relationships [in 2009]. Kanouse voted against the resolution, but says he’s staying in the church and urges others to do so."  But 6 years later he acknowledges he's gay and comes out to a youth conference. Married 40 years with children, he claims the Holy Spirit led him to announce it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lutheran-bishop-comes-out-as-gay-after_55b6637ce4b0074ba5a54ac5

It still baffles me that librarians, who came out many, many years ago and lived openly with their partners and enjoyed great careers, are braver and more honest than pastors, movie stars, NFL players, and reality show stars.  Must be the money—librarian salaries are quite low. I just have no sympathy for this man who lied to his wife, family, church, friends and then actually back stabbed other gays with his vote just a few years ago. Disgusted.

Winners and losers in the minimum wage increase

Moving to a $15/hr minimum wage isn't necessarily a win-win for society: Because low-wage workers get less work experience under a higher minimum-wage regime, they are less likely to transition to higher-wage jobs down the road.

"The key intellectual upshot is that, despite what some people want you to believe, the laws of economic gravity have not been suspended. You can’t impose costs on some without trade-offs for others. You can’t intervene in the market without unintended consequences. And here’s a haunting fact that seems to make sense: Raising the minimum wage will produce winners among job holders from all backgrounds, but it will disproportionately punish those with the lowest skills, who are least likely to be able to justify higher employment costs."

David Brooks

This is most certainly true

Right now our elderly cat isn’t well, and we’re doing everything we can to tempt her to eat and drink.  I wonder if she’s just kidding around and enjoying all the extra attention?

The race-based wealth gap

What happens with employees investing in 401(k)s? The investment behavior of  9,600 Alcoa workers was examined between 2003 and 2010 for racial differences.  Outcome:  Blacks and Hispanics invested differently than whites.

• Black and Hispanic employees were less likely to participate in the plans at all
• minority contributors to the plans chose safer, low-returning assets like money market accounts than riskier fare like stock or bond funds
• minority employees were more likely to make early withdrawals from their accounts, or take loans out against them
• black salaried employees were less likely to participate in the plans than Hispanic or White salaried employees

Yet, at the end of the article, despite showing investing behavior was different,  the author still concluded “it’s important to keep in mind that racial inequality can manifest itself in many different ways, including some with the potential to perpetuate the disparity in our retirement years.”

http://qz.com/343369/racial-disparities-can-be-found-even-in-our-401k-accounts/

Will the Clintons pull it off again? Don’t be stupid, Republicans

Republicans should not be fooled. If Democrats wanted to run the perfect candidate to spoil the 2016 election for Republicans, it would be Donald Trump. The few issues he's right about is just a trail of bread crumbs to the big bad wolf of more Democrat statism.

The President’s trip to Kenya

I'm glad Obama finally made a visit to Kenya, birthplace of his father. His attention to anything "African" has been poor. Like President Clinton, President Bush made two separate trips to Sub-Saharan Africa. On one trip he visited three of the poorest countries in the world: Liberia, Rwanda, and Benin. He also made huge strides in HIV treatment and Trafficking in Persons (slavery) prevention. Under Obama, those programs have really limped along after great strides under Bush. I think many Africans expected more from Obama since he is half African, but were very disappointed. He's ignored Africa's problems, especially its fight against radical Islamists for the most part. Making a hash tag about kidnapped girls from a Christian school in Nigeria got his wife a lot of warm fuzzy points on the internet, but didn't save any Christian children.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/boko-haram-mocks-bringbackourgirls-hashtag-campaign-in-latest-video-9604307.html

http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2013/07/01/kenyan-leaders-slam-president-obamas-gay-rights-comments

http://tbo.com/news/church-of-the-brethren-brings-altruistic-message-to-tampa-conference-20150712/

A prophet for our time—speaking over 100 years ago

There’s more to Easter Island heads than meets the eye—bodies

http://www.idealistrevolution.org/easter-island-head-discovery/

We’ve been thinking for all these years that they were just heads, however all along, the sculptures have secretly had torsos, buried beneath the earth.  Some 70 feet tall and 270 tons.

http://www.eisp.org/5454/

https://news.artnet.com/art-world/easter-island-head-bodies-293799

Hulk Hogan, John Kerry and Nicki Minag

I see they are going to ruin Hulk Hogan's career because he used the N word some time in the past. About 45 years ago (after he'd met with the enemy) John Kerry was back stabbing every VietNam soldier before Congress after a tour of 4 months and a self inflicted wound, and yet he managed a career move where he gets to back stab all of us including blacks, Asians, and Hispanics with the Iran deal. Where's the outrage from the word police? And black Nicki Minag gets rich on lyrics like "You a stupid hoe, yeah you a you a stupid hoe" and calling women she doesn't like lab rats and bitches. And please, don't tell me that's her art.

Calls for more gun control

Within minutes the Louisiana theater tragedy had been politicized by the gun controlists. I don’t recall them saying much when an illegal alien felon shot a woman walking with her father in San Francisco.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/crime/2013/12/19/mass_shootings_in_america_northeastern_criminologists_james_alan_fox_monica.html

But it’s a myth that mass shootings are on the increase.  News 24/7 makes it seem that way.   And that’s not the only myth this research busts. Especially more laws.

And, perhaps most dispiriting, the authors argue that pretty much every policy proposal intended to reduce mass shootings has been worthless. Increased funding for and access to mental health treatment? A well-meaning idea, but likely ineffective in preventing mass murder, given that, “with their tendency to externalize blame and consider themselves as victims of mistreatment, mass murderers see the problem to reside in others, not themselves,” and thus would likely avoid all opportunities to receive psychiatric help. Would renewing the 1994 federal assault weapons ban do any good? Probably not: “a comparison of the incidence of mass shootings during the 10-year window when the assault weapon ban was in force against the time periods before implementation and after expiration shows that the legislation had virtually no effect, at least in terms of murder in an extreme form.”

I bought a copycat Feta cheese

Real Feta cheese is made with goat or sheep's milk, according to this article, but I bought a "copycat" Feta made with Buffalo milk from Bulgaria. Didn't know there were buffalo in Bulgaria, but apparently the Indian breed has spread around the world. From 1962 to 1990, Murrah buffaloes from India were imported into Bulgaria and a new population of buffalo was created by upgrading the local buffalo.  https://www.marketdistrict.com/foodie/foodie-focus/a-betta-feta

Black lives matter