I'm sure anyone reading this has heard about the release of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl that was engineered by President Obama and the cheers from the Right Wing...until they got the marching orders of "SSSSHHHH, the black guy did it, bad, bad, bad!"
I know, I know, I'm playing the race card, it has absolutely nothing to do with the black guy, it has to do with we've never done this before, trading prisoners or something for some silly soldier...except we have. Right John McCain? Well, that was different. OK, how about St. Ronnie? Trading 1500 missiles for 3 hostages and hosting the terrorists? To Iran? Which, the hostage takers then turned around and grabbed 2 or 3 more Americans to see what they were worth.
Oh! It's because he was a deserter! He walked away! He's not worth it!
OK, he may have walked away, may have left his post, but we don't know why. And, I, for one, have to question the sanity of any person who would walk away from the subjective safety of a military base into war torn Afghanistan...on his own...without any weapons or vehicle, supplies. So there's that. But, again, so we leave him with the Taliban? We don't bring him home? We don't care what actually happened? Even though we have worried, since his capture 2009, about what may happen to him?
BUT, due to the information leaked by Chelsea Manning, the New York Times was able to trace through the daily log of Afghanistan activities/chronology to find out that Sgt. Bergdahl had walked off the base on different occasions, always to return(reasons being to watch a sunset/sunrise, pretty non-terrorist stuff). Also blown out of the water with these logs was the story that 8 soldiers died looking for Bergdahl. Only 2 died during the active search and they died in another province, not looking for Sgt. Bergdahl.
But to watch the trashing of Sgt. Bergdahl and his family from the right is so heinous. Of course, the right says that "we" think of him as a hero. Only people I've heard throwing the "hero" label around have been the right. No, again we, on the left and most in the center, act as adults. Bring the young man home, sort out the details/facts and then figure out what should be done, but at best its all very muddied territory.
So why have they decided he's a traitor(besides the fact that Obama got him released without blowing anyone up)? Well, because the Taliban said so. They said he was helping them, because he was in 4 videos produced by them and he hadn't got his throat slit by them, so that means the Taliban is telling the truth. Of course the Taliban would have NO reason to lie to us, right? Why is he a "deserter" because the honest, truth loving Taliban said he walked away from his post/went out drinking/maybe he left to use the latrine/or it was because he decided to go AWOL for a few days in the posh hotels in that area...because the Taliban would not lie to us, right? Since we have shown them nothing but respect and honesty in all these years, right? The reports that have been released(thank you Chelsea Manning) are, at best ambiguous about why he walked off his post.
So, did he do something wrong? If he did, doesn't 5 years in Taliban custody warrant punishment? Or have we, as a country, gone off the deep end and enjoy to see torture of our own soldiers? Its time for him to come home, and, as adults, we can sort this out in our courts, our country. It's time for the right wing/republicans/teabaggers to grow the fuck up and act like adults, instead of petulant childish bullies just obstructing and gossiping their merry way to far right PACs instead of thinking about the young man that has been held prisoner and, like we have done in every other war, we didn't stop until we brought him home.
I say, Welcome home Sgt. Bergdahl, may peace be with you.
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Saturday, June 7, 2014
Sunday, September 29, 2013
History, Gardening, Dinner and Democracy--All Mashed Together
Warning: I'm waxing philosophically here...could get deep....
I garden. Yes, its a verb, not just, I have a garden. I've enjoyed gardening since childhood, having grown up in a family that had farmers on both sides and an uncle(Mike) who owned 5 lots, 4 of which were garden plots. I remember going to his home and "helping" by pulling up the carrots and picking the tomatoes and enjoying other stuff like the the rich smell of carrots and turnips just out of the earth always excited me...go figure.
During this time, I remember people complaining about the differences between real and "store bought" produce. My uncle was of the opinion that the "company" farms( i.e., not small family farms) were "manipulating " the plants so they could grow all year long even tho that wasn't normal. Most people just sort of laughed at Uncle Mike behind his back--see he was old fashioned and just really didn't understand about "progress".
Well, as we now know, that's basically what happened. I was reading an article about the tomato and how, in the 70's, the agriculture corporations came out with a "season-less" tomato. Did it taste like a tomato? No, but their idea was to flood the market, marvel at being able to have tomatoes, cheaply, all year round...and in a decade, no one would really remember what "real" tomatoes tasted like and the agra-businesses would make money.
This is a Genovese Costulo tomato, the one on the right is a Brandywine. Not a perfect round sphere, but oh so luscious, who needs pretty when you have taste?
So...it sounded like something that would work, and it did for many a year, but most people who grew up with real tomatoes remembered the sweet, juicy treat and dreamed of the summer days when the deep red fruit was available...maybe a plant on the balcony, maybe one of the small family farm kiosks that are available in some towns, but they remembered.
So, now, go to the present. Not only are Farmer's Markets in every town, but they're packed with people looking for those summer treats that are full of flavor! They've become fluent in the language of tomato--heirlooms, determinant, indeterminate, Box Car Willie, Lunch Box, Brandywine, Genovese are all well known adjectives and pronouns rather than just Big Boys and Early Girls. The consumer has gone even farther by growing their own, demanding organic and wanting to know which products are GMO or not! So, in other words, the citizens are debunking the corporations ideas and, if not winning, making a dent in the idea that people will just settle for what we shove at them.
Also, because of my gardening, we eat a lot more "fresh" stuff--no canned tomatoes for this family, nosireebob, when I'm cooking, I have fresh tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash, herbs, spices...but this does mean a bit more work for me. I mean it is easier to just open a can and throw it in. No weeding, no seeding, no waiting. Right now, between par-boiling tomatoes to make sauces, I'm roasting peppers, slicing up squash, freezing peppers. Also, giving some of it away, to friends, to our church(we have a summer program about sharing your gardening "wealth") and not doing it just because I'm overwhelmed by the bounty(I've got about 2 gallons of tomato sauce at this time and I've roasted at least 40 peppers), but because its good to share and to give to others that have less than you. Yes, its a bit messier than just going to the supermarket, which more and more is looking like SlaveMart, but its a much more satisfying feeling.
Yes, two of my 80% home grown meals--stuffed peppers and a tomato/mac dish. The only added ingredients that were bought? Ground beef and cheese for one, a chicken breast, whole grain pasta and cheese for the other.
So, how does this warp into democracy? We have been forced into this political farce by big bidness buying the republicon crazies, who, since Reagan, have made government the "bad guy". We've been taught that we shouldn't have a War on Poverty or a Great Society, both of which did take a bite out of being poor, but that being poor is criminal...while giving more and more of the People's wealth to the corporate sluts. We've allowed the greed of human nature to become honorable position, unless, of course, it may truly affect us(like those teabaggers that carry signs, "Keep your gov't hands off my Medicare!", kinda sad when people don't know that Medicare is a Government program, eh?).
Education funding is cut, but more money sent to the War Industry and the Prison Industry. Republicons try to cut food stamps by billions of dollars, while giving twice that amount to the agra-business whores who do lap dances for them. We are told that this evil president has made the deficit so much worse...without most of the media yelling, "LIARS!" at the top of their lungs(since the deficit has shrunk faster under President Obama than the last 3 or 4 Republican presidents. But, most of the media has also been bought by the corporate whores who own most of the media, so why would they turn away from the golden idol?
Its time we, the American people, stand up and take a real look at what is happening. We did it with food, an important ingredient of life and we need to do the same with democracy...another sweet luscious fruit of an earlier generation. Its time to learn the lessons of being somewhat old fashioned...and remembering that we are the Government, we are the ones that fire the Government representatives, but we need to spend time to educate ourselves on what is happening and what is important, not just what the sound bytes tell us. Yes, soundbytes are easy, but they just aren't as satisfying as the truth and compassion for your fellow human being.
I garden. Yes, its a verb, not just, I have a garden. I've enjoyed gardening since childhood, having grown up in a family that had farmers on both sides and an uncle(Mike) who owned 5 lots, 4 of which were garden plots. I remember going to his home and "helping" by pulling up the carrots and picking the tomatoes and enjoying other stuff like the the rich smell of carrots and turnips just out of the earth always excited me...go figure.
During this time, I remember people complaining about the differences between real and "store bought" produce. My uncle was of the opinion that the "company" farms( i.e., not small family farms) were "manipulating " the plants so they could grow all year long even tho that wasn't normal. Most people just sort of laughed at Uncle Mike behind his back--see he was old fashioned and just really didn't understand about "progress".
Well, as we now know, that's basically what happened. I was reading an article about the tomato and how, in the 70's, the agriculture corporations came out with a "season-less" tomato. Did it taste like a tomato? No, but their idea was to flood the market, marvel at being able to have tomatoes, cheaply, all year round...and in a decade, no one would really remember what "real" tomatoes tasted like and the agra-businesses would make money.
This is a Genovese Costulo tomato, the one on the right is a Brandywine. Not a perfect round sphere, but oh so luscious, who needs pretty when you have taste?
So...it sounded like something that would work, and it did for many a year, but most people who grew up with real tomatoes remembered the sweet, juicy treat and dreamed of the summer days when the deep red fruit was available...maybe a plant on the balcony, maybe one of the small family farm kiosks that are available in some towns, but they remembered.
So, now, go to the present. Not only are Farmer's Markets in every town, but they're packed with people looking for those summer treats that are full of flavor! They've become fluent in the language of tomato--heirlooms, determinant, indeterminate, Box Car Willie, Lunch Box, Brandywine, Genovese are all well known adjectives and pronouns rather than just Big Boys and Early Girls. The consumer has gone even farther by growing their own, demanding organic and wanting to know which products are GMO or not! So, in other words, the citizens are debunking the corporations ideas and, if not winning, making a dent in the idea that people will just settle for what we shove at them.
Also, because of my gardening, we eat a lot more "fresh" stuff--no canned tomatoes for this family, nosireebob, when I'm cooking, I have fresh tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash, herbs, spices...but this does mean a bit more work for me. I mean it is easier to just open a can and throw it in. No weeding, no seeding, no waiting. Right now, between par-boiling tomatoes to make sauces, I'm roasting peppers, slicing up squash, freezing peppers. Also, giving some of it away, to friends, to our church(we have a summer program about sharing your gardening "wealth") and not doing it just because I'm overwhelmed by the bounty(I've got about 2 gallons of tomato sauce at this time and I've roasted at least 40 peppers), but because its good to share and to give to others that have less than you. Yes, its a bit messier than just going to the supermarket, which more and more is looking like SlaveMart, but its a much more satisfying feeling.
Yes, two of my 80% home grown meals--stuffed peppers and a tomato/mac dish. The only added ingredients that were bought? Ground beef and cheese for one, a chicken breast, whole grain pasta and cheese for the other.
So, how does this warp into democracy? We have been forced into this political farce by big bidness buying the republicon crazies, who, since Reagan, have made government the "bad guy". We've been taught that we shouldn't have a War on Poverty or a Great Society, both of which did take a bite out of being poor, but that being poor is criminal...while giving more and more of the People's wealth to the corporate sluts. We've allowed the greed of human nature to become honorable position, unless, of course, it may truly affect us(like those teabaggers that carry signs, "Keep your gov't hands off my Medicare!", kinda sad when people don't know that Medicare is a Government program, eh?).
Education funding is cut, but more money sent to the War Industry and the Prison Industry. Republicons try to cut food stamps by billions of dollars, while giving twice that amount to the agra-business whores who do lap dances for them. We are told that this evil president has made the deficit so much worse...without most of the media yelling, "LIARS!" at the top of their lungs(since the deficit has shrunk faster under President Obama than the last 3 or 4 Republican presidents. But, most of the media has also been bought by the corporate whores who own most of the media, so why would they turn away from the golden idol?
Its time we, the American people, stand up and take a real look at what is happening. We did it with food, an important ingredient of life and we need to do the same with democracy...another sweet luscious fruit of an earlier generation. Its time to learn the lessons of being somewhat old fashioned...and remembering that we are the Government, we are the ones that fire the Government representatives, but we need to spend time to educate ourselves on what is happening and what is important, not just what the sound bytes tell us. Yes, soundbytes are easy, but they just aren't as satisfying as the truth and compassion for your fellow human being.
Monday, October 29, 2012
There has been much skuddlebutt about who wants to do what to/for seniors...so where are the views of the 2 parties and the candidates? Glad you asked:
1. Maintain Medicare's free preventive services:
Because of the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Medicare patients now receive many screenings and an annual "Wellness visit"(although you must use this terminology when making your appointment with your doctor). Seniors also receive cancer screenings and other disease prevention services with no copays.
Obama supports this, Romney wants to terminate this care
2. Continue closing the Medicare part D "donut hole".
First, for people who haven't dealt with this, this is how the donut hole worked prior to the ACA(Obamacare): Senior prescriptions were covered until they got up to $2750...then, even tho seniors were still paying the drug insurance premium, they were responsible for prescription costs up to $4500, then Part D would kick in again. This may not sound like much...except I know that one of my prescriptions, without my insurance, costs about $400, and I have 2 more that add up to $400...this is per month( I have insurance and I only pay a co-pay)...and these are for asthma, blood-pressure, not some rare disease. So it'd only take maybe 3 months for part D to throw me in the donut hole, not too much help.
In the ACA, the "donut hole" has already been cut in half and will be closed by 2020 and this affects over 4 million seniors!
Obama, obviously, supports this. Romney? Nope, let those seniors pay the high prices.Can't afford it, get a job.
3. Stop waste, fraud, abuse in Medicare:
The ACA puts laws in place that ends subsidies for insurance companies, tracking down fraudulent providers who either overcharge or try to swindle Medicare. Just this piece of the legislation is predicted to add about 10 years to Medicare Solvency! In one Fiscal Year alone, this act saved over $4 Billion in fraud and overcharges.
And yes, again, Obama supports this, but Romney doesn't....
So is there anything that Romney supports? Oh, sure.....
4. Raise the Retirement age:
Romney, Ryan and many of the republicon congress support a requirement for all Americans to work to age 69 or 70 before being able to collect full Social Security earned benefits and not receive Medicare until 67. You betcha Romney supports this(and President Obama opposes).
This has been an ongoing march because, we all know that people are living longer! I mean our basic mortality is now in the 80's so we should be able to work longer! Another lie.
Our life span has not been lengthen because all of us are getting old..remember, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin and many other of the fore-fathers lived well into their 70's and 80's. The difference is that infant, child, women of child-bearing age was much lower until the 1950's or so. In the 1930's our life expectancy was about 58, its now 77. BUT the difference in infant mortality? In 1935, the infant mortality rate was 56.7 per 1000 live births. In 2009? It was only 6.7 deaths per 1000 live births. Just that fact skewers the idea that Americans are living so much longer....no, its just that many more people are making it through childhood!
The other fact that is not included in this factoid is there is a big difference on who can work until old age. Look at the Supreme Court! I'm sure their average age is about 65! This works well for people who have worked in higher income workplaces. But for the working poor? Those people who serve you at diners, work fast food, retail(yes, I'm really thinking about mallwart here), middle class workers such as police, firefighters, trades--all of these people are at risk of shorter life spans.
Again, Romney is just fine with people working until they die. President Obama opposes this.
5. Medicare Coupons..or the Ryan plan of Medicare vouchers.
We already know who's plan this is....So Romney/Ryan/Republicons want to end Medicare and give Seniors a voucher of about $7000 to "shop" for health care insurance. Now, any senior that has to search through Part D plans or Medicare Advantage plans knows how difficult and aggravating that is. And the triple R's want you to do that with insurance companies...why not just farm it out to Groupon like a spa coupon? I can see the email:
"Hurry for your chance at this medicare groupon discount!!! Our program ensures you'll get some care...just don't be very ill cuz it doesn't cover cancer, transplants, heart disease...or anything else that may be considered too expensive for our partners to be able to make any money!"
Add to this, their idea of repealing the ACA and losing the savings that Medicare has seen since 2010 and that spells financial ruin for many middle class seniors.
This is one of the Romney/Ryan's great plan, Romney has called Ryan's budget, "Marvelous"...President Obama Opposes.
6. Block-Grant Medicaid and reduce funding.
Why should seniors worry about Medicaid? That's for poor people. Sorry, but one of the largest uses of Medicaid funds is for Nursing homes for middle class seniors. The House budget committee would cut funding by $800 Billion and allow states to spend the remaining funds any way they want.
Romney, of course, supports this. President Obama opposes.
Romney doesn't care about seniors who aren't as rich as he, and before you go to the polls, you need to know this. If you are a senior and vote for Romney and the other R Politicos, you are, in all probability, affecting your ability to live safely and securely with the knowledge that your health care is covered...and again....
Mr. Romney where are your TAX RECORDS!!!!!
WHAT ARE YOU HIDING!!!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Walker's Lies to the governor's mansion
So, the aftermath of Scott Walker's win is what? That Wisconsin citizens are just fine with no collective bargaining? That Wisconsin citizens think that its just fine to cut public education? To sell public lands/utilities? No, I don't think so....
First why did Walker win? Obviously, he doesn't care about the Wisconsin people, How did Walker win? Well, that's a bit more interesting....
First, Walker outspent Tom Barrett 8:1...and that don't count a bunch of other money that was in the shadows...like the money that had people wearing signs( signs saying that Barrett was a baby killer/immoral/approved of gay marriage, you know, those so-called values that the right scares people with), Walker minions would pay $100 per sign to have home owners put them in their yard(Barrett signs didn't come with that dividend), and then there were the commercials....NRA sponsored an ad stating that Barrett wanted to take away hunters' rifles(specially deer rifles--BIG FAT LIE), other ads about Barrett hating babies and loving gays...
Yes, money made a difference, but there were some other issues as well:
Also, many voters, when asked, said they made their mind up in May...and at that time, the Dems were still in the primary stage. I'm conflicted about this. Part of me feels that its important to allow the voters to choose their candidate...OTOH, we also knew that there were dirty tricks on the other side--the right had "fake" dems running in primaries(for state general assembly), we knew that time was short...couldn't we just have the state dem association...just this once(or for this type of craziness) get all the candidates together and choose one?!?!?!? Republicons do it often enough, sometimes we need to just act together, instead of acting like cats chasing some shiny feathery thing.
So, how much effect will the recall election have on November, probably not much. This election did show us how votes can be bought...thank you SCOUTUS and Citizens United--but considering how much money was spent, Barrett wasn't beat by that much(considering he only had about 13-15% of the money in the race, he should have only received 13-15% of the vote) Racine flipped red to blue(yes, I know there is a recount going on) and Obama won the "exit polls" over Romney 5:1 and, in California, Orly Taints only received 3% of votes in her bid for U. S. Senator. What does that mean? That there are only 113,000 crazy bigots in California!
First why did Walker win? Obviously, he doesn't care about the Wisconsin people, How did Walker win? Well, that's a bit more interesting....
First, Walker outspent Tom Barrett 8:1...and that don't count a bunch of other money that was in the shadows...like the money that had people wearing signs( signs saying that Barrett was a baby killer/immoral/approved of gay marriage, you know, those so-called values that the right scares people with), Walker minions would pay $100 per sign to have home owners put them in their yard(Barrett signs didn't come with that dividend), and then there were the commercials....NRA sponsored an ad stating that Barrett wanted to take away hunters' rifles(specially deer rifles--BIG FAT LIE), other ads about Barrett hating babies and loving gays...
Yes, money made a difference, but there were some other issues as well:
- Walker lied about his "gain" of thousands of jobs since he took over when the truth is that Wisconsin is 51st in job recovery in the nation(and has lost over 10,000 jobs). Although Tom Barrett and his staff came out and said it was a lie(well, he prolly used the old, "misspoke" quote), Walker was not challenged by the main stream media.
- Many people thought that Walker didn't deserve to be recalled because, as far as they knew, he hadn't done anything wrong, of a criminal nature and were somewhat worried that recall elections could become...umm...trendy. If someone didn't like what happened at the real election, they'd just come up with millions of $$ and fight it. OK, that's a bit of sarcasm, but I just couldn't help myself. Of course, the average Wisconsin voter hadn't been following the "John Doe" state and federal investigation. They might just end up with dingbat Kleefish as governor.
- Because of the "new" voter laws(that Walker and the republicons rammed thru), students did not vote in the same amount as is usual(and you know those kiddies...they vote liberal more than not). The new law states that you must live in your residence for 28 days, rather than the 10 previously. Five of the largest universities dismissed classes 10-21 days before the recall which left many of them disenfranchised(couldn't vote). Marquette University did make arrangements that students could come back and vote and they had a very good turnout, but in reality, if that's a 2-3 hour drive for someone just to vote and then turn around and go home? How many people are going to be able to do that? Another interesting fact: the Walker campaign stalled the recall process by three weeks back in January when they said they were trying to decide if or when they would challenge the signatures--just enough time to screw those students....hmm......
Also, many voters, when asked, said they made their mind up in May...and at that time, the Dems were still in the primary stage. I'm conflicted about this. Part of me feels that its important to allow the voters to choose their candidate...OTOH, we also knew that there were dirty tricks on the other side--the right had "fake" dems running in primaries(for state general assembly), we knew that time was short...couldn't we just have the state dem association...just this once(or for this type of craziness) get all the candidates together and choose one?!?!?!? Republicons do it often enough, sometimes we need to just act together, instead of acting like cats chasing some shiny feathery thing.
So, how much effect will the recall election have on November, probably not much. This election did show us how votes can be bought...thank you SCOUTUS and Citizens United--but considering how much money was spent, Barrett wasn't beat by that much(considering he only had about 13-15% of the money in the race, he should have only received 13-15% of the vote) Racine flipped red to blue(yes, I know there is a recount going on) and Obama won the "exit polls" over Romney 5:1 and, in California, Orly Taints only received 3% of votes in her bid for U. S. Senator. What does that mean? That there are only 113,000 crazy bigots in California!
Monday, May 28, 2012
Quinn's so called budget...or how to make retirees homeless!
I just can't figure out why politicians keep attacking seniors...first its the tea party and republicans trying to privatize(read banksters steal the $3.2 Trillion in trust fund) Social Security, then Paul Ryan and his carnival shell game of "vouchers", and now Governor Quinn(who's supposed to be a DEM), wants to cut senior programs and attacking state retirees pensions and health care. I know, I know, all of you have been told how good we have it and we're breaking the state...and the public believes the lie. SB1313 tore apart the security of health care for seniors, now the general assembly and the so-called "liberal" governor want to cut cost of living increases. I don't know about the rest of the world, but in the last 4 years that I've been retired, gas has gotten ridiculous, which has affected what I spend for gas, what I spend for food, you know, those luxuries of living....
Now, this is because of the rich wanting to be richer and have many of their bills subsidized by what's left of the middle class/working poor. As I've stated in past posts, Illinois is not broke, but the tax system is--we need to get rid of the retailer's discount on sales tax(for large retailers) and single sales factor, again for large corporations(mom and pop operations are exempt from this handout). But, no...the state of Illinois lawmakers are quivering and licking the feet of the Chamber of Commerce(read...stick it to the little guy) and the Chicago Commercial Club, both of which that have board members who receive 7-8 figure golden parachutes. These Monopoly men don't want any tax reform, that would mean they would have to pay their fair share, nope, let's take it out on the 80 year old secretary who's making under $25000 a year after working for 30+ years!
A couple of weeks ago, Senate Bill 1313 passed both the houses with bi-partisan votes...nice to see our so-called representatives working together to screw us! And quickly! It took all of 2 weeks to pass 1313(ok, the number is ironic...but maybe it shoulda been SB 666), no hearings, no committees, no public comments. Just screw the senior citizen. What this does is change the way retiree insurance is handled and could end up costing retirees whole bunches of money..now, the lie that's told to all is that retirees got "free" insurance...hmm....I have out of pocket expenses that total about $500-600 a month(that includes premiums I pay for my family) and I actually thought I knew the meaning of "free"...obviously, the Chamber, Commercial Club and legislature own a different dictionary than I do.
So now the latest and greatest way to screw employees is either eliminate the cost of living raise, or to cut it to less than 1.5% or to give retirees a so called choice--we can either choose between having some type of health insurance or a cost of living increase...isn't that FUCKING NICE...why do I feel that I'm Oliver saying to Sikes, "please sir, could I have a bit more gruel?" Only problem is no one is going to come and proclaim me an heir! And how does the corporate media report on this? The far right leaning Chicago Tribune had an article about how the general assembly members and governors...have made out like wall street bandits while the average state worker's pension is less than $25,000...and many get only that-no Social Security. But the Trib has been trumpeting "many" trumped up pension scandals...there was the one on 2 men that upped their pension by working for one day at a school, then the ex-representative who doubled his pension by working for Alderman Burke for a month, but not one article on the 27,000 retirees who would be severely effected by cuts to their only form of retirement income.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure that if we(union) were able to actually bargain, we could come up with some solutions-we have in the past, but that's not gonna happen. We are an easy target so why would our corporate legislatures allow a few facts about our pensions get in the way???? Yes, these changes would effect the general assembly members who vote on them, but not to the degree that it will state retirees...I mean, I only had one job--in a prison--for 30 years, unlike many of our part time politicians who collect $67,000 a year in salary...and another $69K(representatives) or $80K+(senators) for office "allowances", not to mention mileage and per diem...now, as I said, I worked for the Department of Corrections. I began as clerical, then went to officer and retired as a correctional counselor--I made, after 28 years about $65,000 for a full time job! They start out as $67,000 the first year for their part time job. I did not receive mileage to go to and from work and was expected to take a state vehicle if I had to travel to Springfield...so, again, why is the general assembly working to screw us out of our pensions??????
All I have to say is remember, WE VOTE and we will not be afraid to vote you out of office.
Now, this is because of the rich wanting to be richer and have many of their bills subsidized by what's left of the middle class/working poor. As I've stated in past posts, Illinois is not broke, but the tax system is--we need to get rid of the retailer's discount on sales tax(for large retailers) and single sales factor, again for large corporations(mom and pop operations are exempt from this handout). But, no...the state of Illinois lawmakers are quivering and licking the feet of the Chamber of Commerce(read...stick it to the little guy) and the Chicago Commercial Club, both of which that have board members who receive 7-8 figure golden parachutes. These Monopoly men don't want any tax reform, that would mean they would have to pay their fair share, nope, let's take it out on the 80 year old secretary who's making under $25000 a year after working for 30+ years!
A couple of weeks ago, Senate Bill 1313 passed both the houses with bi-partisan votes...nice to see our so-called representatives working together to screw us! And quickly! It took all of 2 weeks to pass 1313(ok, the number is ironic...but maybe it shoulda been SB 666), no hearings, no committees, no public comments. Just screw the senior citizen. What this does is change the way retiree insurance is handled and could end up costing retirees whole bunches of money..now, the lie that's told to all is that retirees got "free" insurance...hmm....I have out of pocket expenses that total about $500-600 a month(that includes premiums I pay for my family) and I actually thought I knew the meaning of "free"...obviously, the Chamber, Commercial Club and legislature own a different dictionary than I do.
So now the latest and greatest way to screw employees is either eliminate the cost of living raise, or to cut it to less than 1.5% or to give retirees a so called choice--we can either choose between having some type of health insurance or a cost of living increase...isn't that FUCKING NICE...why do I feel that I'm Oliver saying to Sikes, "please sir, could I have a bit more gruel?" Only problem is no one is going to come and proclaim me an heir! And how does the corporate media report on this? The far right leaning Chicago Tribune had an article about how the general assembly members and governors...have made out like wall street bandits while the average state worker's pension is less than $25,000...and many get only that-no Social Security. But the Trib has been trumpeting "many" trumped up pension scandals...there was the one on 2 men that upped their pension by working for one day at a school, then the ex-representative who doubled his pension by working for Alderman Burke for a month, but not one article on the 27,000 retirees who would be severely effected by cuts to their only form of retirement income.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure that if we(union) were able to actually bargain, we could come up with some solutions-we have in the past, but that's not gonna happen. We are an easy target so why would our corporate legislatures allow a few facts about our pensions get in the way???? Yes, these changes would effect the general assembly members who vote on them, but not to the degree that it will state retirees...I mean, I only had one job--in a prison--for 30 years, unlike many of our part time politicians who collect $67,000 a year in salary...and another $69K(representatives) or $80K+(senators) for office "allowances", not to mention mileage and per diem...now, as I said, I worked for the Department of Corrections. I began as clerical, then went to officer and retired as a correctional counselor--I made, after 28 years about $65,000 for a full time job! They start out as $67,000 the first year for their part time job. I did not receive mileage to go to and from work and was expected to take a state vehicle if I had to travel to Springfield...so, again, why is the general assembly working to screw us out of our pensions??????
All I have to say is remember, WE VOTE and we will not be afraid to vote you out of office.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Occupy NATO...or Living in a Police State
I'm sure that most people know that NATO is meeting in Chicago and if you've turned on to either the local broadcast news or the corporate media, you've been told that only a couple of thousand have shown up to protest, and most of the photos and media stream seem to show a bunch of white "punk" type kids--long hair, dreadlocks, tattoos, you know the type, the white version of "other--be afraid". My husband just loves listening to WGN(I put them just under Fox Noise for right wing propaganda) and watching that was almost comical to see the news people falling all over the dogma of "cops are wonderful, protesters are lying little whiny brats." At one point, the camera spied two black protesters, smiling, gesturing and talking to the police line and the commentator was talking about how the men were antagonizing the police...of course he said they were doing that BEFORE the camera was turned on them, but it wasn't like the camera was close to them...the shot was taken off of a building or stand so I doubt if the men even knew they were on TV(plus...didn't they know they were at the wrong place? I mean they were black! There weren't supposed to be anyone but white over privileged brats!)
BUT, listen to Democracy Now on Free Speech TV(channel 9415 on Dish) and you receive a much different picture of the protesters: the nurses rally actually included nurses? The Anti war protest had people of all ages(and not all of them had tattoos or piercings), all colors, from poor to well off.
One of the most interesting pieces was the over 40 impassioned speeches from vets who "returned' their medals. Now, the local news(this time CBS) had shown a couple of vets throwing their medals in a direction and then did about 4 minutes on how many of these young men and women probably didn't understand how they would feel later in life about this...just like the Viet Nam Vets who did this and then wished they hadn't(only problem? Not many of them felt bad either). From this news piece, it certainly wasn't reporting, you would assume there were maybe 5 or 10 20-somethings that did something rash. That was not even close. The truth about these men and women was more powerful. They were not only in for 1 tour, but many...most of them were not 20, but 30/40, some with over 10 years of service and all upset over how our government has been neglectful in their duties with PTSD, traumatic brain injury and other injuries; the lies they were told while serving(Iraqi liberation, WMD's); the sexually assaulted women of the Military Forces. Maggie Martin, I was a sergeant in the Army. I did two tours in Iraq. No amount of medals, ribbons or flags can cover the amount of human suffering caused by these wars. We don't want this garbage(the medals). We want our human rights! We want our right to heal." A Marine corp veteran, Vince Emanuele, stated he was giving his medals back: "First and foremost, ...for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. Second, ... four our real forefathers. I'm talking about the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee...Black Panthers, civil rights unions, unions, our socialist brothers and sisters and our ecology brothers and sisters. And lastly and most importantly, our enemies are not 7,000 miles from home. They sit in boardrooms. They are CEO's. They are bankers. They are hedge fund managers. They do not live 7,000 miles from home. Our enemies are right here and we look at them every day! They are not the men and women who are standing on this police line. They are the millionaires and billionaires who control this planet and we've had enough of it! So they can take their medals back!" Lance Corporal Scott Olson(enlisted 2005, 2006-Iraq and 2008) also threw his medals(4-global war on terror, operation Iraqi Freedom, National Defence, Good Conduct) toward the fence of the NATO Summit--he's the gentleman that was severely injured in Occupy Oakland when he was struck with a beanbag round from police and Amy Goodman also
interviewed him.
BUT, listen to Democracy Now on Free Speech TV(channel 9415 on Dish) and you receive a much different picture of the protesters: the nurses rally actually included nurses? The Anti war protest had people of all ages(and not all of them had tattoos or piercings), all colors, from poor to well off.
One of the most interesting pieces was the over 40 impassioned speeches from vets who "returned' their medals. Now, the local news(this time CBS) had shown a couple of vets throwing their medals in a direction and then did about 4 minutes on how many of these young men and women probably didn't understand how they would feel later in life about this...just like the Viet Nam Vets who did this and then wished they hadn't(only problem? Not many of them felt bad either). From this news piece, it certainly wasn't reporting, you would assume there were maybe 5 or 10 20-somethings that did something rash. That was not even close. The truth about these men and women was more powerful. They were not only in for 1 tour, but many...most of them were not 20, but 30/40, some with over 10 years of service and all upset over how our government has been neglectful in their duties with PTSD, traumatic brain injury and other injuries; the lies they were told while serving(Iraqi liberation, WMD's); the sexually assaulted women of the Military Forces. Maggie Martin, I was a sergeant in the Army. I did two tours in Iraq. No amount of medals, ribbons or flags can cover the amount of human suffering caused by these wars. We don't want this garbage(the medals). We want our human rights! We want our right to heal." A Marine corp veteran, Vince Emanuele, stated he was giving his medals back: "First and foremost, ...for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. Second, ... four our real forefathers. I'm talking about the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee...Black Panthers, civil rights unions, unions, our socialist brothers and sisters and our ecology brothers and sisters. And lastly and most importantly, our enemies are not 7,000 miles from home. They sit in boardrooms. They are CEO's. They are bankers. They are hedge fund managers. They do not live 7,000 miles from home. Our enemies are right here and we look at them every day! They are not the men and women who are standing on this police line. They are the millionaires and billionaires who control this planet and we've had enough of it! So they can take their medals back!" Lance Corporal Scott Olson(enlisted 2005, 2006-Iraq and 2008) also threw his medals(4-global war on terror, operation Iraqi Freedom, National Defence, Good Conduct) toward the fence of the NATO Summit--he's the gentleman that was severely injured in Occupy Oakland when he was struck with a beanbag round from police and Amy Goodman also
interviewed him.
Then there was the van that hit a young woman and had a protester that was stuck on the front of the hood of the van. Now the police stated that the officer that was driving had been hit by a protester and had a concussion, but its not like this can be proven...and, when was he struck? When he was running over the young woman(who did end up in the hospital)? Then there was the man who had been hit with a billy club in the teeth when he tried to help a woman who had fallen & couldn't get up quick enough for the police, who were hitting her in the legs, back and abdomen yelling at her to stand up. There wasn't anything like that spoken on corporate media.
Also, police detained by gunpoint 3 independent media who were live streaming from the march--one was from change.org -- when the cops attacked his van--there were 3 people
in the van, the cops ordered them out of the car, cuffed them, and began attacking
their equipment(banging the hard drives, cameras, lenses, etc. on each other, on the ground)...so much for the real 4th estate. Oh, then the cops left and told one of the men
they had been looking for a similar car...when the reporter pointed out they were in a 99 Lexus with out of state plates, the cop just smiled. Sure, no harassment by police...and I'm the twin of Angelina Jolie!
in the van, the cops ordered them out of the car, cuffed them, and began attacking
their equipment(banging the hard drives, cameras, lenses, etc. on each other, on the ground)...so much for the real 4th estate. Oh, then the cops left and told one of the men
they had been looking for a similar car...when the reporter pointed out they were in a 99 Lexus with out of state plates, the cop just smiled. Sure, no harassment by police...and I'm the twin of Angelina Jolie!
Reiner Braun, German Peace Activist..protested at NATO because he states the bogeyman(Russia) is no longer...NATO spends over $1T annually for war that could be used to construct rather than destruct. Kay McVay, retired nurse, was there both for the Nurse's Rally(Friday) and the anti-war rally. There were also Chicago activists protesting against Emmanuel's mental health closures, home care providers who haven't been paid by state/county/cit, child care providers not paid by city, much of this because the politicians re-appropriated much of this money to pay for the extra security for NATO at the loss of the neighborhoods that need support most.
Alleged bomb makers that had undercover police officers who were the actual ones with the plans of "bombing"...can we say "entrapment"? Let's just stir up prejudice against the protesters by the very old infiltrate and denigrate.
Tom Morrell, performed at the Nurses rally and also at the antiwar rally. He's been very involved in social justice movements for the last couple of years, specially in Wisconsin. He had started with songs he wrote specifically for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Little known fact? He and President Obama were both staying at the Sheraton---among other things they share--both have Kenyan fathers and white American mothers, both attended Harvard at the same time.
Jesse Jackson Jr. went through the history of NATO, why it began(cold war), why it's really not needed any longer and why we can't afford to be the sheriff of the world, specially when we can't take care of our own people.
Now, I am willing to say that there are probably 10% of the police who take their cute scary "stormtroopers" costumes to heart and think they're robo-cop, much like the protesters have their 10% of anarchists and troublemakers, but way too often, we are not informed of both sides having their time of "behaving badly"...its only the ones that tow the corporate master's rule that are allowed explanations and that, also is just wrong and we should not stand for it.
Now, I am willing to say that there are probably 10% of the police who take their cute scary "stormtroopers" costumes to heart and think they're robo-cop, much like the protesters have their 10% of anarchists and troublemakers, but way too often, we are not informed of both sides having their time of "behaving badly"...its only the ones that tow the corporate master's rule that are allowed explanations and that, also is just wrong and we should not stand for it.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
President gets to sign a bill!!!! STOCK act
Today, President Obama signed into law the Stock Act. This act means that congress and their staff must now obey the same rules on insider trading as the rest of us do! Well, close to it, anyway.
Now, why is this a big deal? Because there was bi-partisan support for the bill! It got through the do nothing house and there wasn't a filibuster in the senate. It's like the republicans decided to govern instead of act like toddlers that need a nap after too much sugar(and are just yelling, "NONONONONO!")
The STOCK(Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge) Act stops members of Congress, their families, their staff and executive branch employees from using inside information they garner from their positions to trade stocks and securities and limits them from buying stock in initial public offerings to those that are also open to the general public.
But WAIT, there's more!
The STOCK Act updates the 1978 Ethics in Government Act and improves the transparency of personal financial disclosure statements. Some of the improvements include:
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Now, when are we gonna get that bill out of committee on the DISCLOSE Act and Citizen's United pimping?
Now, why is this a big deal? Because there was bi-partisan support for the bill! It got through the do nothing house and there wasn't a filibuster in the senate. It's like the republicans decided to govern instead of act like toddlers that need a nap after too much sugar(and are just yelling, "NONONONONO!")
The STOCK(Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge) Act stops members of Congress, their families, their staff and executive branch employees from using inside information they garner from their positions to trade stocks and securities and limits them from buying stock in initial public offerings to those that are also open to the general public.
But WAIT, there's more!
The STOCK Act updates the 1978 Ethics in Government Act and improves the transparency of personal financial disclosure statements. Some of the improvements include:
- By September, Congress is required to make personal financial disclosure reports filed by executive branch hi-level employees, lawmakers, candidates and congressional employees on the web.
- Starting in July, transactions previously reported annually must be reported within 45 days. Prior to this law, a stock purchase/sale might not be made public for up to 18 months, depending on when it was bought/sold.
- By the end of 9/13, information contained in personal financial disclosures will be made available as a downloadable database.
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Now, when are we gonna get that bill out of committee on the DISCLOSE Act and Citizen's United pimping?
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Happy Birthday ACA, and how it affects Seniors
March 23 marks the two year anniversary since President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act (ACA) into law and made health care reform a reality. The Alliance for Retired Amercans hosted about 30 events across the country to celebrate the anniversary - and the benefits for seniors were enacted by this bill.that come with it. While the whole week will celebrate the anniversary, March 19 is a day for all seniors to celebrate the ways that the ACA is improving their own lives.
When we hear people bad-mouth the new health law by derisively calling it ‘Obamacare,’ say, ‘Damn right! Obama cares for seniors – that is why his new law is closing the doughnut hole, lowering the cost of prescription drug costs, and helping seniors better afford their doctor visits and medical tests,’” said Edward F. Coyle, Executive Director of the Alliance.
There's been many lies by the right on what "ObamaCare" does to the American Health Care machine...I prefer dealing in facts and realities:
Fact: Cheaper prescription drugs for seniors. Since the ACA began, seniors have saved over $2 billion for medication coverage. President Obama and the Democratic led congress knew the burden that the Part D "Donut hole" had caused for many seniors. This has now been cut in half and will be gone by 2020.
Fact: Free vaccinations and screenings such as mammograms, prostate cancer screenings. All seniors are eligible to an annual "wellness" health check up with their doctor, which covers a multitude of tests/screenings, smoking cessation, nutritional information.
Fact: You choose your doctor. If the doctor that you want to see accepts Medicare, then you are covered.
Fact: ACA reduces waste, fraud and abuse in Medicare which extends the life of the Medicare Trust Fund and ensures that seniors receive their "money's worth".
Fact: There are NO death panels in Medicare. This was an outright lie. If there are any type of death panels, it would be under the guise of insurance companies denying clients health care!
So...if you are a senior and you are under the Medicare act, your health care has been strengthened by the Affordable Care Act...enjoy your new benefits and stay healthy!
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Thank you Dad
March 14 would have been my father's 86th birthday. He died in 1990, but I know he'd be very unhappy with the way life in this country, one that he fought for in WW2 has turned. Although my father was not the rebel that I am(I think I got that from his sister, my Aunt Helen), his views were still much more liberal than conservative and he was the first one that I ever heard use the phrase, "If there was a pig on the republican ballots, those idiots would vote for it!" So, I guess I'd just like to thank my dad for some of my attributes:
First, my red hair--it fits my personality
Second, my love of reading; although both of my parents read and my mother probably read a bit more to me when I was a child, my father was the one who introduced me to the magical world of newspapers. Dad worked in Chicago and took the train. In those days there were 4 Chicago papers--the Trib, Sun-times, Daily News and Chicago Today. Two were morning papers and the other two were afternoon. We never read the Tribune, dad called it the newspaper for the rich and middle class people who read it were duped into believing they were just like the upper class. He got me interested in the papers by way of the comics-HEY I was only 7 or 8! As I got older, he'd mention different articles that I might like to read, he was sneaky!
Third, my love of knowledge; yes, if you are reading articles by the time you're 10, you're also being told that knowledge is important. My father and I would debate topics, debate football, debate why I should be able to stay up later(I usually lost that one) and we'd do it without yelling(that started in my teen years...hormones and independence ya know). He wanted me to be sure I knew what I was speaking about, not just talking about something because my friends liked it.
Fourth, my passion for social justice; my mother always said my father was always bringing home strays--dogs, cats, people and he did, specially the people in later years, but his heart was in the right place. I remember one time when I was still in elementary school and he had his secretary and her husband to our house for dinner. Her name was Millie and she was New Orleans and she was....black! In a middle/blue class neighborhood in the suburbs!!! Talk about throwing the neighborhood for a quake, you'd have thought Dad had invited MLK, Jr., Malcom X and Jesse Jackson to move in with us! Now, my dad thought those men were evil, it was the 60's and civil rights were just awakening, but he was so angry that our neighbors would be so....stupid(read racist in this day and age) about friends of his! My father showed me, whether he knew it or not, how blind racism can be--he would give his shirt to someone he knew, no matter what race/creed/religion, but to ones he didn't, he thought the worst. The indirect definition of white privilege.
He gave me my love of football, taught me how to dance(although he never got me to understand that I was the girl, I wasn't supposed to lead), my humor and my sarcasm.
He had been a mid-level manager for all of my life and really didn't have much good for unions, but when I started getting involved with mine, he said it was good that I was standing up for other people and now, in his late 50's, understood how important unions could be. After working over 30 years for one company, they terminated him before he turned 60 and he never really recovered from that in some ways. At least he had a pension that started when he was fired.
In 1986 I became a correctional officer, after working for 6 years in the clerical department of the prison. After about 6 months, he told me that it had changed me, made me a bit more hard hearted, but he said, "That's good Kim, you were too softhearted, like me." No, dad I'm very proud to be as soft hearted as you. I love you and I miss you and may you find peace in the your world.
First, my red hair--it fits my personality
Second, my love of reading; although both of my parents read and my mother probably read a bit more to me when I was a child, my father was the one who introduced me to the magical world of newspapers. Dad worked in Chicago and took the train. In those days there were 4 Chicago papers--the Trib, Sun-times, Daily News and Chicago Today. Two were morning papers and the other two were afternoon. We never read the Tribune, dad called it the newspaper for the rich and middle class people who read it were duped into believing they were just like the upper class. He got me interested in the papers by way of the comics-HEY I was only 7 or 8! As I got older, he'd mention different articles that I might like to read, he was sneaky!
Third, my love of knowledge; yes, if you are reading articles by the time you're 10, you're also being told that knowledge is important. My father and I would debate topics, debate football, debate why I should be able to stay up later(I usually lost that one) and we'd do it without yelling(that started in my teen years...hormones and independence ya know). He wanted me to be sure I knew what I was speaking about, not just talking about something because my friends liked it.
Fourth, my passion for social justice; my mother always said my father was always bringing home strays--dogs, cats, people and he did, specially the people in later years, but his heart was in the right place. I remember one time when I was still in elementary school and he had his secretary and her husband to our house for dinner. Her name was Millie and she was New Orleans and she was....black! In a middle/blue class neighborhood in the suburbs!!! Talk about throwing the neighborhood for a quake, you'd have thought Dad had invited MLK, Jr., Malcom X and Jesse Jackson to move in with us! Now, my dad thought those men were evil, it was the 60's and civil rights were just awakening, but he was so angry that our neighbors would be so....stupid(read racist in this day and age) about friends of his! My father showed me, whether he knew it or not, how blind racism can be--he would give his shirt to someone he knew, no matter what race/creed/religion, but to ones he didn't, he thought the worst. The indirect definition of white privilege.
He gave me my love of football, taught me how to dance(although he never got me to understand that I was the girl, I wasn't supposed to lead), my humor and my sarcasm.
He had been a mid-level manager for all of my life and really didn't have much good for unions, but when I started getting involved with mine, he said it was good that I was standing up for other people and now, in his late 50's, understood how important unions could be. After working over 30 years for one company, they terminated him before he turned 60 and he never really recovered from that in some ways. At least he had a pension that started when he was fired.
In 1986 I became a correctional officer, after working for 6 years in the clerical department of the prison. After about 6 months, he told me that it had changed me, made me a bit more hard hearted, but he said, "That's good Kim, you were too softhearted, like me." No, dad I'm very proud to be as soft hearted as you. I love you and I miss you and may you find peace in the your world.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
News of the Day-3/13/12
I'm going to try this as my carrot--news of the day that interests me or is important in the eyes of the media.
DOJ rejects Texas Voter ID Law
The Department of Justice rejects the Texas Voter ID law due to data that shows the law clearly discriminates, at least, against Hispanics.
Although Texas could not show any evidence of widespread voter fraud(or even a small piece of evidence) or voter impersonation, both of which could be used to require a specific photo id, the data did show that nearly 11% of registered voters with hispanic last names would be denied their right to vote due to not having a driver's license or other specific government ID compared to about 5% of non-hispanic voters. Another issue has been that to get the specific ID's, a person must go to the Public Safety office in the area. Only problem? There are about 80 counties that do not have an office so people must travel much farther--and these are people that don't have a driver's license so I doubt many of them drive!
Alabama, Mississippi and the 19th Century
This week, we learned that Alabama and Mississippi republicans are stuck on stupid, with about 2/3 of those polled thinking that evolution is not real, about 1/2 thinking President Obama is a Muslim and about 25% thinking that interracial marriage should be illegal.
But then half of them also like Rush Limbaugh. My biggest problem? I know that every one of those crackers are white and they really make if difficult for us white folks who actually listened in school! Sometimes we just need to pour some bleach in the gene pool.
And the preferred candidate of those that still think interracial marriage should be illegal? Newt Gingrich. I guess its lucky they are in the minority.
Surprise! Bank Officials are responsible in Foreclosure problems
It seems that all those problems with foreclosures and paperwork that was blamed on the little beancounters was actually part of the scheme to just steal OUR property! Bank managers told their underlings just to make up titles for themselves and run the documents through, even when the underlings were against it. The report is a result of an audit done by the Department of Housing and Urban Development . Many of the findings show just how greedy banksters can be when they have no regulations stopping them.
Rush Limbaugh and moments of silence
Well, minutes...long minutes....of silence since over 130 sponsors dropped him like the radioactive rabid gerbil that he is. Dead air is one of the worst things that can happen on radio and it happened for about 5 minutes on his show...go ahead Rush, spew forth your lies and hatred some more.
Well, that's all for now, hope everyone has a good evening!
DOJ rejects Texas Voter ID Law
The Department of Justice rejects the Texas Voter ID law due to data that shows the law clearly discriminates, at least, against Hispanics.
Although Texas could not show any evidence of widespread voter fraud(or even a small piece of evidence) or voter impersonation, both of which could be used to require a specific photo id, the data did show that nearly 11% of registered voters with hispanic last names would be denied their right to vote due to not having a driver's license or other specific government ID compared to about 5% of non-hispanic voters. Another issue has been that to get the specific ID's, a person must go to the Public Safety office in the area. Only problem? There are about 80 counties that do not have an office so people must travel much farther--and these are people that don't have a driver's license so I doubt many of them drive!
Alabama, Mississippi and the 19th Century
This week, we learned that Alabama and Mississippi republicans are stuck on stupid, with about 2/3 of those polled thinking that evolution is not real, about 1/2 thinking President Obama is a Muslim and about 25% thinking that interracial marriage should be illegal.
But then half of them also like Rush Limbaugh. My biggest problem? I know that every one of those crackers are white and they really make if difficult for us white folks who actually listened in school! Sometimes we just need to pour some bleach in the gene pool.
And the preferred candidate of those that still think interracial marriage should be illegal? Newt Gingrich. I guess its lucky they are in the minority.
Surprise! Bank Officials are responsible in Foreclosure problems
It seems that all those problems with foreclosures and paperwork that was blamed on the little beancounters was actually part of the scheme to just steal OUR property! Bank managers told their underlings just to make up titles for themselves and run the documents through, even when the underlings were against it. The report is a result of an audit done by the Department of Housing and Urban Development . Many of the findings show just how greedy banksters can be when they have no regulations stopping them.
Rush Limbaugh and moments of silence
Well, minutes...long minutes....of silence since over 130 sponsors dropped him like the radioactive rabid gerbil that he is. Dead air is one of the worst things that can happen on radio and it happened for about 5 minutes on his show...go ahead Rush, spew forth your lies and hatred some more.
Well, that's all for now, hope everyone has a good evening!
Introduction of a Union Thug
Hello, my name is Kim and I'm a union thug...or so it seems. In fact, I'm one of those sleezy union thugs that not only had the audacity to find a union job, but a cushy gomminent union job! The best of the best, Stateville Correctional Center in Illinois. We had the largest cockroaches I ever saw and when the cafeteria had "lunch meat" we'd count the ground hogs, trying to alleviate our fears of what type of meat we were being served. We fought hard and long for the benefits we had gave up raises, but no one speaks about that...doesn't fit in with right wing lies.
So, a little more about me. I've been politically active since about age 14, worked my first presidential campaign in 1971(for the 72 election). Even tho I was only able to walk the neighborhoods, handing out literature, manning the phones and answering questions about the candidates, I impressed many of the older volunteers because I knew some of the issues and where the candidates stood on issues. Before I could vote, I was an informed voter. I tip my hat to my father for teaching me that, but I think he and I had much more in common than the rest of my family.
I began working at Stateville in 1980 and became involved with AFSCME, our union within the first year of hire. I held offices, assisted with the newsletter(and that was before desktop publishing), went to lobby days and helped on political campaigns. I am now the president of my local subchapter of retirees and still fighting the good fight...or at least trying to ensure that my members who only receive a pension(no social security) are protected, along with us that have coordinated benefits.
I have 2 children and 4 grandchildren. Why can't we skip the "child" part and go straight to the "grandchild" part, they listen so much more to me than the first 2! But I guess they are the payment for having to put up with their parents...and it is fun when my children complain about their children....I just laugh and laugh...
I also have 3 German Wirehaired Pointers and a husband and we drive each other crazy in a loving way.
We live in "yuppieville", DuPage County in Illinois. Besides trying to get my blog read, I have a degree in MIS and a certificate in Graphic Design, which I try to use this to make a bit of money...
I describe myself as a bleeding heart liberal feminist---that shoots straight(had to for my job); yes liberals do own firearms, we just believe in some basic safety facts.
So, will I have a liberal bias? OF COURSE! I am a working person, I am of the 99% I want the little people have as much of a voice, if not more, than the 1%, the banksters and the corporations. And, if you make less than $500K, you really need to decide how you can vote republican and vote against your best interests.
Hope you enjoy this little idea of mine! Thanks for reading.
So, a little more about me. I've been politically active since about age 14, worked my first presidential campaign in 1971(for the 72 election). Even tho I was only able to walk the neighborhoods, handing out literature, manning the phones and answering questions about the candidates, I impressed many of the older volunteers because I knew some of the issues and where the candidates stood on issues. Before I could vote, I was an informed voter. I tip my hat to my father for teaching me that, but I think he and I had much more in common than the rest of my family.
I began working at Stateville in 1980 and became involved with AFSCME, our union within the first year of hire. I held offices, assisted with the newsletter(and that was before desktop publishing), went to lobby days and helped on political campaigns. I am now the president of my local subchapter of retirees and still fighting the good fight...or at least trying to ensure that my members who only receive a pension(no social security) are protected, along with us that have coordinated benefits.
I have 2 children and 4 grandchildren. Why can't we skip the "child" part and go straight to the "grandchild" part, they listen so much more to me than the first 2! But I guess they are the payment for having to put up with their parents...and it is fun when my children complain about their children....I just laugh and laugh...
I also have 3 German Wirehaired Pointers and a husband and we drive each other crazy in a loving way.
We live in "yuppieville", DuPage County in Illinois. Besides trying to get my blog read, I have a degree in MIS and a certificate in Graphic Design, which I try to use this to make a bit of money...
I describe myself as a bleeding heart liberal feminist---that shoots straight(had to for my job); yes liberals do own firearms, we just believe in some basic safety facts.
So, will I have a liberal bias? OF COURSE! I am a working person, I am of the 99% I want the little people have as much of a voice, if not more, than the 1%, the banksters and the corporations. And, if you make less than $500K, you really need to decide how you can vote republican and vote against your best interests.
Hope you enjoy this little idea of mine! Thanks for reading.
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