Teachers’ salaries—not what you think

Some questioned my figures for hourly wages for teachers (in a post about the union strike in Colorado on Facebook) being on average $60/hour.  However, the latest I've found is $61.91--$41.41 is the wage, and $20.50 the benefits. Sept. 2018 figures. https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/ecec.pdf.

Benefits for public employees are far more generous than private sector. "Total employer compensation costs for private industry workers averaged $34.53 per hour worked in September 2018. Total employer compensation costs for state and local government workers averaged $50.03 per hour worked in September 2018. "

For the most part we don't pay federal income tax on our benefits, and the government is lusting after that--believing it belongs to the federal government. The employers get a write off too. Imagine the "windfall" to the federal government to waste with just the medical deductions from workers and the business write off costs for the employers.

Kamala Harris must be swooning at the thought!

Democrats working hard to destroy us

Realizing that the Mueller investigation will go nowhere, Congressional Democrats are gearing up for an all out assault on Trump--investigating everything about him. (Wouldn't surprise me if Jeff Bezos isn't funding it.) Along with the Republican Never Trumpers they can't believe someone has blown their cover exposing the graft and corruption in Washington. They are furious at what he's been able to achieve in 2 years. Every time they do this, his ratings go up, and his base becomes more solidified. So they've had to change tactics.

The latest trick is the Green Grab Deal of AOC and her aging groupies. Hoping to make the stock market shake in fear and collapse the roaring economy, they proposed to take our property, transportation and health care and then denied it. If they can get people to lose faith in America, in our economic system and our president, they hope to be able to destroy her as Marxists have been attempting to do for 90 years.

“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent vice of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.” Winston Churchill

https://www.npr.org/2019/02/12/694060405/mcconnell-plans-to-bring-green-new-deal-to-senate-vote  This NPR article is good to read if you want to see how biased this source is.  McConnell is exposing how silly all this is, and NPR leans backwards (or leftward) to say it just isn't fair to Democrats to catch them with their pants down.

Some people just don’t get it.

Because of lower taxes, refunds will be smaller. This seems to upset people who prefer to allow the government to use their money before filing taxes.

From the NYT article: "The result is that taxpayers may be paying less over all but still getting a bill after filing their return. That has caught many people off guard."

Proving that it is hard to underestimate the financial understanding of the average American. They paid less taxes, but are still upset

What about NAD+

Highlights:  “NAD+ and sirtuins in aging and disease,” Shin-ichiro Imai and Leonard Guarente, Trends in Cell Biology, 2014, Aug. 24(8): 464-471. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4112140/  71 references

• NAD ⁺ plays a key role in regulating metabolism and circadian rhythm through sirtuins.
  
• NAD ⁺ becomes limiting during aging, affecting sirtuins’ activities.
  
• NAD ⁺ decline is likely to be due to a NAD ⁺ biosynthesis defect and increased depletion.
  
• Supplementing key NAD ⁺ intermediates can restore NAD ⁺ levels and ameliorate age-associated pathophysiologies.
  

Another article (print full text, free) to read at the fitness center.
“NAD AND THE AGING PROCESS: ROLE IN LIFE, DEATH AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN” Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2017 Nov 5; 455: 62–74.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5419884/

“NAD was discovered over a hundred years ago (Harden and Young, 1906), and now that it has achieved its status as a super-centenarian molecule, its role in the biological process of aging is being recognized (Braidy et al., 2011; Gomes et al., 2013; Lin et al., 2000; Massudi et al., 2012; Scheibye-Knudsen et al., 2014; Zhu et al., 2015). It has been shown that NAD levels decline during chronological aging, and that this decline is both a consequence of the aging process and also a contributor to the development of age-related cellular dysfunction (Braidy et al., 2011; Gomes et al., 2013; Massudi et al., 2012; Scheibye-Knudsen et al., 2014; Verdin, 2015; Zhu et al., 2015). It is possible that a vicious cycle exists in which molecular mechanisms involved in the aging process, such as oxidative stress, DNA damage, senescence, and inflammation, lead to tissue NAD decline which subsequently exacerbates the processes that caused its decline in the first place (Figure 1). To potentially intervene in this vicious cycle it is crucial that we understand the mechanisms that lead to cellular NAD decrease during aging and, in particular, whether the decrease is mediated primarily by changes in its degradation, synthesis, or both. Furthermore, it is critical to understand how oxidative stress, DNA damage, inflammation, and senescence impact cellular NAD metabolism during the aging process. In the current review we will present a critical analysis of this subject, and will provide new mechanistic hypotheses to explain the age-related NAD decline.”

The grey, golden years—Vantage Point Devotional for February 13

I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come.
Psalm 71:18

In Psalm 71, we see David reminiscing on his life, and now acknowledging the grey in his hair. While he is filled with praise for God’s lifetime of provision, he is eager to pass what he has learned to the next generations. David asks the Lord to sustain him so that he might.

Aging has its challenges…failing health, falling income, possibly even thoughts of uselessness or obsolescence. But God wants you to glory in your grey. You have lessons to teach. Times when God healed health issues, or provided just the right job when you thought financial ruin was looming. You are not useless so long as you can have the sound of praise in your heart and in your voice. Grandparents can often get their messages through to children and youth when the words of parents fall on deaf ears.

What legacy are you preparing for the generations who will follow you? The most important is their memories of your love and praise for the Lord. Ask Him to be your sustainer through your grey (or golden) years. Intercede for God to grant His loving wisdom to the grandparents who serve in Congress, the courts and the Trump Administration.

58 1/2 years

Homocysteine, vitamin B and me

About eight years ago I examined the evidence (in recent articles at a level I could understand) that high levels of homocysteine (>15 micromole/L and the threshold is about 10-11) were  linked with cognitive decline in the elderly and that supplements of B6, B12 and folate (folic acid) could slow the decline.  So at that time, I searched out B supplements that were close to those used in the studies, but that wasn't easy since the studies were sort of all over the map. But I did find a brand by Country Life (Basic B Caps) that I liked and which didn't seem to upset my stomach. I had no testing to show my homocysteine levels were high, but the articles I read reported that it was elevated in the elderly.  The studies in the U.S. are different than those in other countries because since the 1960s by law our food is fortified with folic acid, so this affects how useful additional supplements would be late in life.

Recently I have reexamined the issue of high levels of homocysteine and health problems in the elderly, including cognitive decline, cardiovascular events, atherosclerosis and strokes.

I'm a librarian, so my article of choice is always begin with a review article, and I've found several that update what I'd read eight years ago. Review articles have extensive bibliographies which saves time in wandering around the internet. I also always look for full text, and sometimes only the abstract is at the journal site, but may be somewhere else, like Research Gate.

The issues of heart disease and stroke still seem to be unclear, but homocysteine's affect on the brain seems more clear--it damages it--cognitive decline, white matter damage, brain atrophy, neurofibrillary tangles and dementia. Some studies suggest the jury is still out on whether high homocysteine is a marker or a cause, but whichever, supplements of vitamin B are slowing down the damage.

In Sweden, all patients with memory problems are routinely screened for high levels of homocysteine and if they show elevated concentrations, B vitamin supplements are recommended. The Smith/Refsum article concludes that 17 million people (30%)  in the U.S older than 60 could benefit from lowering their homocysteine levels.

"Homocysteine, B vitamins, and cognitive impairment," David Smith and Helga Refsum, Annual Review of Nutrition, 2016, 36:211-239. This includes and additional 15 pages of supplemental material https://www.researchgate.net/publication/305418844_Homocysteine_B_Vitamins_and_Cognitive_Impairment

"The controversial role of homocysteine in neurology: from labs to clinical practice," Rita Moretti and Paola Caruso, International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2019, 20, 231. https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/20/1/231

Both articles suggest further research.  Meanwhile, I'll stay with the B vitamins, but will try to get more naturally through leafy green vegetables (Romaine lettuce, asparagus, broccoli, kale, spinach) for folate B9  https://www.myfooddata.com/articles/foods-high-in-folate-vitamin-B9.php  which may act differently than folic acid (disagreement on this) which is what most supplements have, and B12 (meat, fish, dairy--beef, chicken, pork, lots of cheeses, tuna, salmon ) https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/diet-nutrition/g1967/vitamin-b12-super-foods-47012607/   https://www.myfooddata.com/articles/foods-high-in-vitamin-B12.php#vitamin-b12-requirements and B6 (turkey, beef, Tuna, sweet potatoes, potatoes) http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=108

Gene mutations that affect homocysteine are very rare.  https://www.skepticalraptor.com/skepticalraptorblog.php/mthfr-gene-vaccines-facts-myths/

"5,10‐Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase 677C→T and 1298A→C mutations are genetic determinants of elevated homocysteine,"  R. Castro, QJM: An International Journal of Medicine, Volume 96, Issue 4, 1 April 2003.

210th anniversary of Lincoln’s birthday

“While the Civil War raged in late 1862, Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant wanted to stop the trade of Southern cotton. A number of Jews were involved in the cotton trade, including some in black market activity, and on Dec. 17, Grant issued a shocking order calling for the expulsion of all Jews from a wide swath of the South.

Fortunately the order had little impact because of faulty army communications – and to President Lincoln. When Lincoln heard that Grant was attempting to banish Jews, he quickly reversed the order.

“To condemn a class is, to say the least, to wrong the good with the bad,” Lincoln said. “I do not like to hear a class or nationality condemned on account of a few sinners.””

https://www.jta.org/2019/02/12/opinion/when-president-lincoln-fought-for-the-jews?

He complains that he's homeless--he's lost his party home

There's an article in the Atlantic by a former Republican who says he can now see the "other side." He describes what the Republican Party used to be when he was part of it during Reagan and Bush: "Republicans argued for limited government, economic growth, and free trade. The party respected the role of religion in public life and envisioned America as a welcoming society to immigrants and the unborn." In other words, everything the Democrats didn't then and not now, not ever. And Trump is all of that. He has NEVER rejected legal immigration. The author is a never Trumper; he's warped his mind so he has gone to "the other side" of socialism, infanticide, religious restrictions, and slow growth. In short, he hates Trump.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/i-left-gop-because-trump/581965/?

How many bartenders are there in Congress?

That's not how we do it, AOC.  She says she's the only 29 year old bartender in Congress, so that shows how Congress doesn't represent the American people. There are a lot more 29 year old female librarians than there are 29 year old female bartenders, and I don't ever recall one of them being in Congress. For good reason.  That's not how our Representatives are elected, m'am--by employment category. In fact, in the universe of employed women in the country, just how many 29 year olds are middle class, college educated barkeeps?

It’s not easy being green—Ben Shapiro

Episode 713 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBZ8sT8Omjc
Jeff Bezos exposes the National Enquirer as a blackmail racket, the Democratic Green New Deal gets off to a rough start, and we check the mailbag!

Episode 712  https://youtu.be/oEQlZcRb0hc
It's not easy being Green, and it's not easy these days for the MSM to continue to cover for the racism, lies and anti-Semitism of Democrats.

The racism on today’s college campuses

I saw this in a closed Facebook group, so I'll only share parts. A parent posted (with the texts) that his college student son (enrolled at Berkeley I believe) was studying Chinese with a classmate. His son is white, the classmate a member of a "protected" minority, but they are friends. The friend told his son that they probably couldn't study at his dorm because whites were not allowed to be in the building although blacks, Latinos and Asians were, and he'd check, but he thought if he did come there he would have to sign some sort of form. So the 2 of them were looking for a different study space.

I attended college in the bad old days of residential segregation, employment discrimination and open racism of the 1950s-1960s, but my U. of I. dorm McKinley (owned by the YWCA) had blacks, whites, Asians, and many immigrants (most from Chicago, the daughters of refugees from both Nazis and Communists), and my roommate was Chinese. We had all varieties except boys--they were welcome only on the first floor public area and in the basement serving our meals. What amazing freedom college kids had in those days.

Update: I checked the race and gender page of Berkeley's enrollment information.  21.3% white and 32% Asian.  But to make that look better, each Asian is broken out by country--China, Korea, Japan, etc.--9 categories for Asians, but only one for whites.  Not even immigrant Irish or Swiss or English.  Just White. Like that white blob at the SOTU last Tuesday.

Men in drag—shameful

Apparently, not all American blacks found blackface offensive--some even used clownish make-up that way, but most do. What was once considered fun and vaudevillian by the majority, even TV and film stars, must go.

OK. Now let's get rid of adult men dressing in drag. Since I first became aware of it maybe 50 years ago I have found it extremely offensive for men to make fun of us that way. Oh sure. The drag queens don't call it that, but how else would you describe the emphasis on prosthetic breasts, caked on make-up to hide stubble, ballooning wigs, ridiculing the way women move, walk and talk? Isn't that vaudevillian? Isn't that "womanface?" Whether it's called cross dressing, transvestite, impersonation, or clown face, it's insulting to women.

Just as there is nothing wrong or shameful about a real black face and physique, there is nothing wrong with a woman's face or body. We're built this way for a reason--to fulfill God's command to be fruitful and multiply. We were made in God's image, not from dirt, but from bone and flesh. Women wear make-up to look attractive and sexy--some more successfully than others. Blue lips and green fingernails no matter which sex applies them, do not suggest health, vitality and fertility. Having men ridicule us for profit or fun or just plain meanness, is not a compliment, and it certainly isn't amusing. Let's make dressing in drag as acceptable as Confederate war hero statues.

Hide your yearbooks and annuals in case Democrats ever take up this cause (they won't since they are confused about sex and gender anyway). I know you'll find it even in my high school year book from the 1950s with the athletes dressed as the cheerleaders wearing skirts and wigs for a school skit.

What else do they want to take from us?

In the name of equality, which Dennis Prager says is the ideology that killed 100 million people in the 20th century, what else besides fossil fuels, borders,  religious rights, history and memorials, wealth, the unborn and language do the Democrats want removed or controlled by the government?  Creativity, curiosity and critical thinking.  Those minds are very dangerous to Socialists.

Why the women in white who cheered and chanted are so frightening

“I've spent the majority of the day today, as I do every day these days, feeling my unborn baby move. But today, I've been more in tune to the precious life that's growing inside of me. I feel her rearranging herself, kicking, and trying to get more comfortable. I feel her hiccups. I feel her react to different things I eat. Especially if it's cold or if it's chocolate. I feel her respond to her daddy's hand on my stomach or his voice talking to her. I feel her respond to music I play. I feel her excitement when she hears her sisters playing and laughing. I feel her stillness when things are chaotic, listening to hear what's going on. I feel her. Living. She's a living, breathing life. Right now. In my womb.

Last night, I sat and listened to the POTUS ask congress to put an end to late term abortion. LATE TERM ABORTION. As he spoke, half of the room erupted in standing applause. The other half is what completely perplexed me. I watched in horror as Nancy bit whatever it is she bit in her mouth the entire night. I watched as Chuck smirked and smiled about the murdering of babies at full term, in the birth canal. And I watched as the women in white sat stone cold silent, arms crossed, grimaces on their face, seemingly in opposition of this request.

When did this happen? How did this happen? When did LATE TERM abortion become ok or acceptable NATIONWIDE? Are you telling me that not a single one.... NOT ONE, of the women in white oppose the murder of innocent blood? Is that really a democratic thing? I know a ton of people on the left who oppose late term abortion. Some of them even oppose abortion in general. You're telling me not one of our elected democratic representatives oppose it up to the day of birth? I don't get it. Do they really lack in the most basic of morals? Or, are they scared? So scared to stand and applause the life they fight so hard for in other settings, in front of their fearless leader chomping at the bit behind the podium? Are they scared of their constituents? What are they afraid of? They sure aren't afraid of the God who breathed His own breath into these unborn children, the SAME God who created them. The God who says He Himself knit us in the womb, and that He knew us before He formed us. They aren't scared of Him.

I got the message loud and clear. You wore white. You stand in unity for "women's rights"- women who agree with you at least. You cheered, chanted, and applauded your own huge accomplishments of beating out your male opponents. You are proud. You should be. You have the chance to make a difference and to speak truth, to make changes. But last night, you failed. You were an embarrassment. You were a bunch of cowards. Your silence was selfish. You were selfish. You were everything a strong woman is not. And you do not represent me.”

Sarah Dolan Cox

SOTU analysis

President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address Tuesday night, February 5, 2019 and Heritage Foundation experts weighed in with analysis of the president’s policy proposals. Here’s what they had to say.

• Immigration
• Economy
• Law
• Defense & Foreign Policy
• Life
• Energy & Infrastructure
• Health Care
• Education

Now many states want to offer clear skating—no longer a slippery slope

“According to the grand jury, Gosnell's method of "abortion" in these late-term cases was infanticide, plain and simple. He or an untrained staffer would induce labor, deliver the baby alive, and then perform the procedure they called by the chilling euphemism "snipping"--slashing the infant to death with scissors to the neck and spine. "Over the years, there were hundreds of 'snippings,' " the grand jury found. But bodies had been disposed of and files destroyed, so the evidence was sufficient to prosecute in only seven cases. One of those victims, a neonatologist testified, was a boy of "32 weeks, if not more, in gestational age." That is, his mother had been at least 7½ months pregnant.

Why were these horrors allowed to persist for decades? Even if the infanticides had been concealed, there were ample other irregularities in the clinic's operations, including filth, unsanitized instruments, unqualified staff and dangerously inappropriate use of drugs. When the clinic was finally raided in 2010, it was the result of a federal narcotics investigation.

Part of the reason for the regulatory failure was simple bureaucratic indifference or incompetence. Inspectors from the Pennsylvania Department of Health visited several times between 1979 and 1993, noted problems, and didn't bother following up. But after 1993, the inspectors never reappeared until the 2010 raid. The reason was political.

In 1994 Tom Ridge, a pro-abortion Republican, was elected governor, succeeding the antiabortion Democrat Bob Casey. According to the grand jury, Ridge administration officials "concluded that inspections would be 'putting a barrier up to women' seeking abortions. Better to leave clinics to do as they pleased." The new policy did away with all regular inspections of abortion clinics. Mr. Ridge's lassitudinous approach was bipartisan, continued by his successor, Democrat Ed Rendell, who resumed the inspections only after the 2010 raid.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Gosnell and have already obtained guilty pleas from eight of his former staffers. The grand jury's report should also be seen as an indictment of America's post-Roe abortion industry. Its indifference--at best--to legal limits made possible the deaths of untold numbers of babies, lending credence to the argument that legal abortion is a slippery slope to infanticide.”  From WSJ writer, April 19, 2013, James Taranto http://jamestaranto.com/gosnell.htm?

10 SOTU with no applause from Democrats

#1 Jobs: President Trump reported that more Americans now have jobs than ever before — 157 million.  “Nearly 5 million Americans have been lifted off food stamps” thanks to all that job creation.

#2 Record-low minority unemployment:  “African-American, Hispanic-American and Asian-American unemployment have all reached their lowest levels ever recorded.”

#3 Healthcare: Only one Democrat stood to applaud when the President highlighted the “Right to Try” bill, which gives critically ill patients access to lifesaving cures and his commitment about bringing down exorbitant prescription drug prices.

#4 Cutting stifling regulations: "We’ve cut more regulations than any other administration in its entire tenure,“ President Trump said, receiving applause only from the Republican side of the House chamber.

#5 Energy independence: "We have unleashed a revolution in American energy. The United States is now the number one producer of oil and natural gas anywhere in the world. And now, for the first time in 65 years, we are a net exporter of energy,” Only Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia applauded among Democrats.

#6 Veterans: President Trump praised bipartisan efforts to deliver “historic VA reforms” in the last Congress, noting that “after four decades of rejection, we passed VA Accountability so we can finally terminate those who mistreat our wonderful veterans.”

#7 Combating anti-Semitism: While President Trump decried anti-Semitism, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi thumbed through her copy of the speech.

#8 Fair trade deals: "Tonight I am also asking you to pass the United States Reciprocal Trade Act, so that if another country places an unfair tariff on an American product, we can charge them the exact same tariff on the exact same product that they sell to us,“ President Trump said.  Democrats now oppose it.

#9 Stopping Infanticide: When President Trump asked Congress "to pass legislation to prohibit the late term abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s wound,” Democrats were silent.

#10 Anti-socialism: Bernie Sanders’ dismayed expression spoke volumes when President Trump boldly declared that “Tonight we renew our resolve that America will never be a socialist country.” That sentiment used to be taken for granted by both parties.

https://patriotpost.us/opinion/61067-the-10-best-trump-quotes-that-received-no-applause-from-the-democrats

Today’s message from Vantage Point Devotional

“A January 2005 article in TIME magazine reported: “Studies show that the more a believer incorporates religion into daily living—attending services, reading Scripture, praying—the better off he or she appears to be on two measures of happiness: frequency of positive emotions and overall sense of satisfaction with life.”

Are you a happy believer?  The psalm that contains today’s key verse begins with the confession of a very sad person.  Several times, he asks, “Why are you cast down, o my soul?” But he answers his distressing call with hope, praise and prayer.

Among answers to depression given in a 2016 article in Psychology Today, are to resist the urge to dwell on the past, and focus on what is going right.  The article suggests that one incorporate structure into every day. So the TIME magazine article had it right: attending services, reading Scripture, praying! And so did the psalmist: He sings into the night. The question, are you a happy believer, is worth repeating. More, it is worth doing something about. There are many unhappy people in government if the nightly news is any indicator. Pray that they would find the Lord first of all, and then, that they would find the night song in their souls.

Recommended for Further Reading: Philippians 4:4-9 “

Elizabeth Warren’s family lore

Even the MSM are commenting (gently) on Warren's claim to native ancestry, and her suggestion that she was given no advantage. I'll give her the benefit of the doubt--that she was just sharing family lore and in the mid-80s was completely unaware that minorities were in demand by colleges, HR, companies and honoraries. But the departments in those companies and colleges certainly knew it because they made those rules. And seeing those magic words on a registration or application certainly would have at least moved her up on the list assuming all else was equal.

I worked at Ohio State in the 80s and 90s and chatted with departmental faculty who were beating the bushes to find minorities (that's 1/32 to qualify and it's self-described) so they could be in good standing with university administration. And of course, the bigger and wealthier schools could offer the better financial package, and high school graduates were lured to an environment that guaranteed struggle and failure, whereas they might have succeeded in a different school. Minority women were a 2-fer and at interview time nearing graduation their dance cards would be full, while men languished hoping for even one interview. Of course, now 25-years later we pile category on category--first woman, first openly gay woman, first transwoman, first black transwoman, etc. A blonde, blue eyed, wealthy, privileged white woman is going to be disposable.