Google

conservatives unite

Discourses from a conservative Christian viewpoint in regards to politics, the church, world views and controversies; along with the application of the wisdom of G-d's holy word. There IS hope for a sinful and hurting world.... I believe in freedom of speech; however, please temper your language.Freedom of speech does NOT give us the right to be hateful,disrespectful or bigoted. Comments that contain cursing will be deleted! {My comments will often be enclosed when commenting on an article.}

Name:
Location: United States

Favorite composer: Debussy; Favorite artist: Monet; Favorite old author: Charles Dickens

Thursday, October 09, 2008

I am Sarah Palin

Disclaimer:

No one may edit by adding to or deleting from this article. If you need to contact the author please email her at: COMING by Monday of next week......



I am Sarah Palin

Barracuda and maverick she is a “get it done gal”
By mg Robbins
Freelance Reporter


Summary
Political party. Republican, social conservative
__________________________________
Political service
1992-1996 Member of the Wasilla City Council
Promised a progressive, competitive attitude to government __________________________________
1996-2002 Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska
Platform: wasteful spending, high taxes, abortion,
gun rights, term limits
1st Passed legislation overhauling the state’s
ethics laws
Construction for the gas pipeline
Created the position of City
Administrator
Eliminated the Museum Director position
merging the museum with the library
Fired Police Chief
Reduced her $68,000 salary by 10% - City
Council in 1998 reversed her decision
75% cut in property taxes
Eliminated personal property and
business inventory tax
Road and Sewer improvements
Increased funding to police department
Vetoed new library and city hall
Funding for storm-water treatment
protecting freshwater resources
Elected president of the Alaska Conference
of Mayors
2nd Re-elected by 74%
Construction of a $14m multi-use sports
complex – completed on time & under budget
$8m federal funds secured for Wasilla city
government
$19m for public & private entities in Wasilla
area to include: youth shelter, transportation
hub, sewer repairs, rail project
__________________________________
2003-2004 Chairperson, Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation
Commission, appointed by Mayor Frank
Murkowski; served as Ethics Supervisor.
2003-2005 A director of Ted Stevens Excellence in Public
Service, Inc., providing political training
for Republican women
2004 Resigned from Oil and Gas Commission for “lack of
ethics” filing a complaint against Randy
Ruedrich chair of the Alaska Republican party
doing party rather than oil & gas work and
working closely with a company the commission
regulated. A second complaint of financial conflict
of interest against Gregg Renkes, former attorney
general
Decision not to run for the Senate conflicting with
being a team mom
__________________________________
2006 Elected the 11th governor of Alaska as the youngest
and first woman governor
Platform: a clean-government
1st Enacted a bipartisan ethics reform bill signed in 2007
Competitive process to construct a gas pipeline
Sale of the Westwind II jet
Promoted oil & natural gas resource development
Visited Alaska National Guard in Kuwait
$5b invested in state savings
Overhaul educational funding
Implemented Senior Benefits program
Created Alaska Petroleum Systems Integrity office
Climate Change Sub-cabinet

2007 Signed $6.6b operating budget into law
Cut $237m in construction cost reducing construction
budget to $1.6m
2008 Vetoed $286m from the 2009 capital budget
__________________________________
Aug. 29, 2008 announced as the VP nominee on the Republican
ticket. 1st woman and Alaskan to run on a
presidential Republican ticket.


Policies
NRA lifetime member. Supports Second Amendment
including handgun possession but advocates gun safety
education for youth.

Supports capital punishment.

Supports the classroom discussion of creationism.

Opposes same-sex marriage but vetoed a bill denying
same-sex couples state health benefits as unconstitutional.
Pro-Life – opposing abortion.
­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­__________________________________

Personal
February 11, 1964 born: Sarah Louise Heath,
Sandpoint, Idaho to Sarah Sheeran
and Charles R. Heath.
1964 Family moved to Alaska

Schools
1982 Graduated from Wasilla High School, Wasilla, AK.
Head of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes
Point guard and captain, girls’ basketball team
Nicknamed Sarah “Barracuda” because
of her intense play at sports
1984 Miss Wasilla
1987 University of Idaho graduate with a BS in
Communications-Journalism
Second runner-up Miss Alaska pageant
Awarded “Miss Congeniality” & college scholarship


_________________________________
1988 Eloped with high school sweetheart Todd Palin
Children: Track, b.1989; Willow, b.1995;
Bristol, b 1990; Piper Indy, b 2001;
Trig, b.2001
2007 Track enlisted in the United States Army
2008 Infantry brigade deployed to Iraq for 1 year
Residence. Wasilla, Alaska
Profession. Sportscaster, Homemaker, Politician
Religion. b. Catholic, a non-denominational “Bible believing Christian”, attends Wasilla Bible Church
Website. Gov.state.ak.us


One touts change while the other brings change.
“You want to talk about CHANGE? You should see a before and
after picture of the State government in Alaska, that's
CHANGE!” says Gary “Butch” King a pilot guide and owner
with his wife Kathy of Wildman Lake Lodge located on the
remote frontier, the Alaska Peninsula. King says “when
Sarah moved to Juneau, so did accountability and
responsibility.” He likened the states capital
to a “bunch of freshmen in a college town.” Once the oil
started flowing so did the money and at $100/bbl,
King likened legislators to “drunken sailors.”

First to go was former governor Frank Murkowski’s state
jet utilized by state employees. However, Perry Green, retired
business owner of David Green, Master Furrier, Anchorage says
Murkowski “was a good man “who tried to cut the state budget
and fiscally turn the state around.” Green says Murkowski did
things that were not popular and it afforded Sarah Palin perfect
timing to seek the governor’s office due to misconceptions.

At one time a Democrat, Green is a registered independent and did not
support Palin in her campaign for the governor’s office. He concludes
“Once elected she has proven to be forceful, dynamic and public
opinion does not sway her. Believing she is doing the right thing
is her principle.” To Greens knowledge Palin has never been on
the receiving end of “big donations from important segments
of the economy be it labor, management or lobbyist,” Green
explained Juneau; the Capital of Alaska is isolated.

It is accessible only by boat or plane. It has only 40 miles of paved
road and that, according to King is the state's major problem that
Juneau is 500 miles from the nearest road and 800 air miles from
the population base which is Anchorage, Wasilla and Fairbanks.
Isolation of the capital breeds a certain contention among voters
who believe it allows legislators distance from voter scrutiny.
Attempts have been made to relocate the capital to no avail.

Alaska is two and a half times the size of Texas with
586,412 square miles of land, 2210 miles wide and the
Aleutian Islands are 1100 miles long with some portions
of the state closer to Tokyo than Washington DC - and
in Green’s opinion it was necessary for governor Murkowski
to have the plane at his disposal for state troopers and other
cabinet members. To reach major cities, “It would be like
flying two-thirds across the country” he says.

Alaska Airlines is the only commercial jet operator out of
the Juneau International Airport servicing Anchorage and
Fairbanks, several smaller communities and Seattle.
With limited daily flights Juneau is not like flying out of
Dallas and not conducive for state business. However, the
legislature opposed purchase of the $2.7m jet as did Palin
and apparently the voters, she won the 2006 gubernatorial
election 48.3% to 40.9% defeating incumbent Murkowski
and former governor Tony Knowles becoming the first female
governor and at forty-two the youngest governor.

Palin lives in Juneau during the legislative session, but
works out of Anchorage the balance of the year. She accepts
a $58 per diem but drives fifty miles to her home in Wasilla
refusing hotel reimbursement. Gubernatorial expenses run
approximately 80 percent less than the previous administration.

She continues to be popular with Alaska voters, polls in 2007
showed her with a 93% favorable rating and 89% popularity rating
among republican and democratic voters. In September
2008 she held a favorable 68% rating. As governor, Palin placed
resource development, education, public health and safety,
workforce development and transportation and infrastructure
development as priority programs.

According to King about half of the Alaska “good old boys
club” legislative body was in the “pocket of big oil or contractors”
funded by oil revenue. It didn’t stop there but like a sieve,
filtered into the departments of Natural Resources and Labor
and into the Public Safety Department. Running her platform on
“clean government” Green says Palin “was elected to ‘clean
house’ and bring political reform. That is what people elected
her for. She bucked the system totally.” King added “when
Sarah finished cleaning house, legislators ended up in jail, or resigned
as did numerous department heads. She saved millions of dollars
for Alaskan voters – and has not yet slowed down.” King exclaims,
“She has truly brought CHANGE to Juneau!”

Contrary to media criticism that Palin eliminated everyone
from the previous administration that did not agree with her
policies, Green counters saying “she wanted people that would
be entirely loyal to her.” This course of action is not uncommon
in an administration change.

On being a Republican. The Republican platform for
Palin is “the right agenda for America.” Palin believes in
equality and the respect for life and walked this talk when
she and husband Todd Mitchell Palin in 2001 elected to
complete their pregnancy with Trig. The baby was diagnosed
as Down syndrome. Further, she believes Americans “can make"
better decisions for themselves than the government could
ever make for us. “Individual freedom and independence
is extremely important to me and that’s why I’m a Republican.”
Previously Palin was a registered independent.

Palin may be a Party gal, but not to the point of compromising
her ethical code. She will differ with Party members and actively
worked to unseat US Representative Don Young. She publicly
challenged Senator Ted Stevens over federal investigation into his
financial dealings but at the same time held a joint press conference
to show party support before his 2008 indictment.

Alaska Policies: Big oil, pipeline & gas companies.
May 2008 TransCanada Alaska Company, LLC and Foothills
Pipelines Ltd. (TC Alaska) were awarded the opportunity to
build and operate the pipeline that will transverse Alaska through
Canada bringing natural gas into the lower 48, a $26b project that
will net billions back into the Alaska economy. Newsweek reported
this as the “principal achievement” of Palin’s administration.

It is no secret the Alaska economy is primarily based on oil
revenues a whooping 85 percent of the operating budget comes
from this source.

Palin is an advocate for drilling in Alaska including in
the Artic National Wildlife Refuge. In August the governor
said “I am pleased to see Senator Obama acknowledge the
huge potential Alaska’s natural gas reserves represent in
terms of clean energy and sound jobs.” Obama favors
completion of the gas pipeline and leasing in the National
Petroleum Reserve for oil and gas production. Palin also agrees
with Obama’s proposal to return $1000 rebates to Americans
“struggling with the high cost of energy.” Palin has already done
this giving $1200 to Alaska citizens following a tax increase on oil.

In opposition Palin disagrees with the profit tax on oil
companies proposed by the Democratic presidential hopeful.
She believes incentives encourage companies to re-invest
their profits into new production whereas profit taxes drain
capital deterring companies from product re-investment
continuing a US dependency from Middle East oil suppliers.

Palin introduced a totally revolutionary and controversial
plan to pipe natural gas out of the ground. Companies currently
use natural gas re-injecting it into the North Slope causing gas
to escape to the surface to keep the oil flowing. When oil revenues
were at an all time high, Palin levied a tax increase.

The Alaska legislature considering her proposal levied an
even greater tax and the Alaska coffers were filled. Green is
not so certain the highly controversial plan is not a mistake.
He questions the “profit break” piping the natural gas into the
states. Just the permitting process with tribal land owners in
Alaska and cooperation with the Canadian government is an
astronomical political quest.

In September this year Palin supported a new five-year
outer continental shelf oil and gas lease program in the
Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea and “limited areas” in the North
Aleutian Basin. The project, Palin believes will go far in
helping to gain independence from foreign oil and gas
imports. The federal Minerals Management Service will work
with residents and local governments in leasing regions and
oil and gas companies to minimize conflicts arising from
subsistence activities such as fish and wildlife resources.

Active Predator Control Program. Possibly the
most controversial Alaska policy for the lower 48 states
is the predator control policy. For liberal voters specifically,
animal activist who may choose an emotional vote based
upon one issue only, for just a moment remove yourself from
your comfortable home here in the south of Texas with food
only as far away as the key in an ignition switch.

As of 2004 approximately ten percent or 6,705 persons
live below poverty level in Alaska. “Unemployment can
be staggering with little economic opportunity” says Green
quoting as high as 50 percent unemployment in some villages.
Without welfare assistance the percentage would be higher.

Fifteen percent of the population is Alaska Natives – Aleut,
Eskimo or Indian. Protected under the Alaska Native Land
Claims Settlement Act of 1971, a substantial number of these
tribes continue to live their traditional cultures. 36 percent speak
their native language preserving their heritage. They occupy
up to 200 villages mostly in rural and remote Alaska.
They rely on hunting and fishing to feed their families.
Caribou and moose, fish and other wildlife are their main
source for food. “There are no McDonald’s, gas stations or
retail stores in these villages” Green says. Tribal communities
rely on trapping, hunting, fishing and gathering to live.
No summer jobs exist for young people, instead they spend the
summer months helping their parents gather fish to dry for the
coming winter.

There is no indoor plumbing or running water and “while
we may complain of $4/gal gas, villagers may pay up to
$11/gal in rural areas. It was in response to rural requests that
Gov. Palin issued an emergency order for the aerial program.
Palin supported the helicopter predator control program through
the Dept. of Fish and Game in 2007. She declared a $150 bounty
per wolf to offset the cost of fuel. Wildlife activists sued Alaska
and the court declared the bounty illegal through Fish and
Game, it would have to funnel through another department.


Alaska is home for the largest Canis Lupus population in the US.
It is estimated that six to seven thousand free roam the state.
Left unchecked, the gray wolf, a fast breeding species could
seriously endanger the ability for some of the Native Alaskans
to feed their families because the carnivore is a natural predator
of both caribou and moose the main staples of the villagers’ diet.

Green says Gov. Palin has a lot of support from poorer voters
in rural areas because of her understanding of the difficulties
of rural life. These people depend on large game to supplement
their meager income, food and clothing. Green says most
people in the lower 48 will not understand this. “They are sold
on the fact hunters are mean and callous, going out to shoot
Bambi.” What people need to realize is that it is not sport hunting
in the Alaskan bush. Controlling the wolf population by thinning
out is all a part of living with nature.” Green challenges 99.99
percent of the American population to go out and trap a wolf, a
“very hard thing to do.”

The use of aircraft is not a hunt rather a “science-driven
abundance-based program…a component of moose and
caribou management in five specific areas of Alaska” to
protect the rural areas. The wildlife resource plan first
works to protect wildlife by increasing the game population
that ultimately ensures Alaska families “the greatest
opportunity to hunt and harvest to feed their families.”
Without this controlled management necessary food
sources could become limited, “eliminating opportunities
for Alaskans to secure wild game for food – to put food
on their families’ table.” To insure proper wildlife
conservation and protect wildlife resources, the Alaska
Wildlife Troopers an enforcement agency, has been
re-introduced. Palin emphasizes Alaska takes seriously
their obligation in the management, conservation and
regulation for all species of wildlife as well as other
natural resources.

Wildlife management is set by the Alaska Board of
Game composed of public appointees and confirmed
by the state legislature. The management program is
advised by Dept. of Fish and Game scientists,
non-governmental agencies and private citizens.
“Our goal” Palin says “is to have healthy populations of all
wildlife…” Palin states her commitment to protecting
wildlife as “an important [Alaska] heritage” one that allows
“many families [to] subsist on wild fish and game.”

Left unchecked the wolf faces the potential for a slow
and painful starvation as they carve out the population
of their own food resources. Remember the picture of
Laverne in La Vernia City Park? Visualize hundreds of
wolves in this same condition. No longer classified by the
Federal Government as an endangered species, the
population is increasing. If you disagree with these policies,
run for office in Alaska and do the best you know how to do.
Still, I assure you there will be wolves at your door.

TrooperGate. You will hear about this scuttlebutt
sometime in October when the Alaska Legislature
releases their investigation into whether Governor Palin
used her position to terminate Public Safety Commissioner
Walt Monegan when after three years he had failed to fire
Palin’s ex-brother-in-law, Mike Wooten an Alaska state trooper.
Wooten threatened her sister Molly McCann, and is alleged to
have told his ex-wife to “rein in your sister [Palin] or I will
take her down.” There is speculation the investigation
into the governor’s office over the Monegan/Wooten
affair could play into that threat.

Palin is accused of firing Public Safety Commissioner
Walt Monegan this year for failing to fire Wooten for the
2005 incident. At the time Palin described Wooten as a
“ticking time bomb” and “loose cannon.” After her
election as governor, she questioned his character as a
public servant representative for Alaska.

Palin denies Monegan was terminated for personal
reasons stating the termination was due to differences
in budget policy. He was offered another position in
the administration which he refused.

Palin ordered the Attorney Generals office to conduct
an internal investigation, the State Trooper organization
ordered an investigation into allegations of continued
misconduct by Wooten and the Alaska Legislative Council
hired Stephen Branchflower, a retired state prosecutor to
investigate allegations of misconduct as well.

Wooten received several days’ suspension in 2006 for
“serious and concentrated patters of unacceptable and
illegal activity.” It was determined by the state trooper
organization that in fact Wooten had threatened his
ex-wife McCann.

The bridge to nowhere. Scandal is not likely to
avoid any politician, real or hypotheized; it is a condition
for the job – nature of the beast. Palin is no exception
and the “bridge to nowhere” is her ballyhoo.

It all started in 2005 with a Highway bill providing
$223m to build a bridge from the 21 mile long,
9.5 mile wide Gravina Island to Ketchikan.
Negotiations were handled by Representative Don Young,
the republican Palin actively worked to unseat from Congress
after her election as governor in 2006. Palin inherited the
project and citing ‘prosperity’ had intentions to see the project
through, but eventually rescinded instructing the Alaska
Department of Transportation & Public Facilities to find a
“fiscally responsible” alternative for access to the Ketchikan
International Airport.

Access to the airport by ferry takes about seven minutes
and runs every thirty minutes. The US Congress, without
a hitch transferred $442m dollars to Alaska to “use at
their discretion for road projects.” And, that is what Palin
did spending $25m of the federal funds building a road on
Gravina to the bridge site. Therein comes her ballyhoo – she
opted not to refund the $442m to Congress. The Alaska
Department of Transportation and Federal Highway
Administration say with “minimal cost” Palin could have
returned the money to Congress, although she had no moral or
ethical obligation to do so under the “no strings attached” award
for “road projects” at their discretion. Palin inherited the
contract for the road and sources from the McCain-Palin
campaign say “the governor was left no viable alternative.”

While critics and media harped on the 50 residents
on Gravina Island, thus dubbed the ‘bridge to nowhere,’
no one seemed to care that the connecting side on Ketchikan
is home to 8000 residents or that the bridge would allow
access for the 350,000 passengers serviced each year
by the airport.

As Vice President Nominee. Media casts doubt
Palin; the mother of five children is capable of discharging
properly the office of Vice President. In 2004 Palin rejected
running for the US Senate because she could not be the
“team mom” for her teenage son if a U.S. Senator,
according to the Anchorage Daily News. Accepting the
VP nomination Palin definitively states she has balanced
the duties of Vice President with the responsibility of motherhood.
Describing Palin as a multi-tasker Green says
“Palin has the capability to do this. She has a lot to learn but
is a quick learner.” She will “vote her conscious for the welfare
of the American people and be a worthy candidate if able to grasp
economic and political reality.”

Green says she is a “good spokeswoman” and both Green and
King laud Palin as honest and not persuaded by special interest.
She has integrity. She surrounds herself with smart people,
knows when to listen, how to analyze facts, but “makes her own
decision then implements the plan” says King. “She is a straight
shooting, hard charging, get it done gal!” Sarah Palin” says King
“is a no BS politician” a refreshing change to what Palin her
self refers to as the “Washington insiders.”

Using the heartbeat away from the president scare tactic,
Green counters these critics saying, “I think her heart beats for
America. She is blessed with energy and enthusiasm and the
need to lead in public service.” Green uses the term “mean
spirited” describing those speculating McCain might not live
out his term in office, “just take a look at his 96 year old
mother to see his family has great genes!”

Would Sarah Palin be capable as President? Green
answers “could she be any worse than what has gone
on from both parties leadership?” Green reminisces over
Roosevelt nominating Truman as his VP and the rancor it
caused. “Some people rise to the occasion while others do
not live up to their expectations.” He believes the country
needs a maverick and “only history will decide” this debate.

King and Green believe McCain was “well advised” and made
a “good political move” in his choice of Palin. “She will
represent people who do not feel they have been represented
in the US Congress and appeal to independents who feel
government does not know how they truly feel” says Green.
The London Daily News wrote that Palin from small town
America has the same values.

“If Sarah gets a chance to dig her spurs into the flanks of
the liberal Washington types” says King “they will know
she is in the saddle!” As far as having legislative experience,
King says she has always been in the executive position in her
private and political life. “With all the hoop-la, it's easy to forget
that [Palin’s] running for Vice-President, not President - not yet.
Sarah Palin, the next Margaret Thatcher? Time will tell.”
[London Daily News, Sept. 8]

Foreign policy. Traditionally the VP is not in a position
to set policy so experience in this area is not a qualifier.
She supports preemptive strikes in an imminent threat
and military operation in Pakistan. Supports NATO
membership for the Ukraine and Georgia. Says the US
should uphold all treaty obligations if Russia should invade
a NATO member nation. One might ask American enemies who
they would most be leery of, a president anxious to negotiate or
one not afraid to “pack a six shooter.” She is a staunch
supporter for Israel.

Of little concern outside the Alaska border, few Americans
consider the Bering Straight places Russia in proximity of US soil.
The Alaska National Guard is the backdoor watchdog for this
nation against any potential predator. While the governor
commands the Guard in peace time, it falls to federal command
in a threatened national emergency. Funding for the National
Guard falls to the federal National Guard Bureau who also
sets policy guidelines for Guard operations in all 50 states.

"The mission of the Alaska Department of Military and
Veterans Affairs is to provide strategically positioned,
relevant and ready military forces capable of rapid deployment
joint operations and mission accomplishment while maintaining
the capability to provide emergency services to the state
of Alaska.” Global Security

Religion, family values and policy. Green does not cater
to the idea Palin will force her religious view on any one.

“She is a firm believer in the American way - regardless of your
religion you may practice it.” Green says Palin goes to
church because she has a “passion” for that part of her life.

Depicted as a staunch believer in traditional marriage
values, Councilwoman Palin in 1995 when she saw
"Daddy’s Roommate" for check-out in the Wasilla public
library took no action. She vetoed a bill as unconstitutional
prohibiting same-sex couples receiving state health benefits.
Does not disagree with creationism discussion in the classroom
and supports public school sex education stressing abstinence but
not opposed to birth control education. She disagrees with
abortion at any stage under any circumstances excepting
for the life of the mother, but does not advocate judicial punishment.
Personal religious preferences did not stop her from opposing a
measure calling for Wasilla bars to close two hours early.
Green says “she has her standards and ‘lives her own life.’”

Personal life. 24- year old Sarah Louise Heath eloped August 29,
1988 to marry her Wasilla high school sweetheart, Todd Mitchell
Palin, son of James F. “Jim” Palin and Blanche (Roberts) Kallstrom.
Todd Palin is descended from the Yup’ik and Curyung tribes through
his mother and maternal grandmother. He is employed by British
Petroleum as a non-managerial production operator. For 18 years
Palin worked in management for BP but elected for the lesser position
to avoid any conflict of interest arising from his wife’s position
as governor. Palin is a commercial salmon fisherman.

Palin races with friend and team buddy Scott Davis in
the world’s longest snowmobile race, the 1,971 mile grueling
back country Tesoro Iron Dog championship from Wasilla, to
Nome then Fairbanks. He has won the championship four times.
Sarah hunts, fishes and runs marathon races.

In September Gov. Palin announced the pregnancy of her
unwed daughter Bristol. Green accuses the press of “jumping on
every small issue creating a firestorm. He says the “same press
that vilifies Palin for her daughter’s condition is the same press
that condones so much freedom for children…” Bristol and Levi
Johnston father of the child plan to marry.

Palin has ruffled a lot of feathers and like any politician she
has made friends and enemies. “That” Green says “is the nature
of politics.” Summing up Sarah Palin, Green says, “She is as
pretty on the outside as she is smart and capable on the inside.”

Election and the media. The intent of this author is to present
the four candidates as candidly as possible without bias
or gentle persuasion. There is much discontent toward media
reporting. As Green says, “I see a direct contrast to people trying
to make the news for you and not let the public decide – allowing
individuals to think for themselves.” News past was reported.
The tendency today is to “tell you the news is the news.”



Ref:
State of Alaska Dept of Commerce Community and
Economic Development;
Alask.gov
Gov.state.ak.us
Gov.state.ak.us/bio
US.gov
Wikipedia
Washinton Post
London Daily News
ADN.com
Wildman Lodge

Interview through personal e-mail & website:
Gary “Butch” King, Pilot/Guide and owner Wildman
Lake Lodge;
by telephone & e-mail: Mr. Perry Green, retired owner
David Green, Master Furriers, 1971 Democratic Delegate
& personal family friend with James Palin and Blanche Kallstrom.


Top of Page

Labels: , ,

Friday, July 18, 2008

A Soldier's Song

Well, what CAN one say...it is awesome.
C~B~N


If I Die Before You Wake


Labels:

No Child Left Behind

One of the greatest problems of our time is that
many are schooled but few are educated.

~Thomas Moore~


ONE YEAR LATER UPDATE:

Well I received a while back this letter from a fellow educator. I unfortunately did not get it blogged before the "campaign" came to a close...for that I am truly sorry.
C~B~N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here is your chance to be HEARD by Congress on the TAKS testing!!! Don't let this one get away! It is your chance to be heard!!!!

No Child Left Behind Campaign

The following is my "experience" that I shared:



Several things I will share with you.

When I worked as a full time educator again after a few years away I discovered what ALL teachers were doing. Primarily, the month preceding the TAKS tests of Math and Language arts was used to "Teach the Test". In other words, there was no science or social studies or any subject taught that was NOT covered by the test for that month. We also had to quickly teach the following month's curriculum because it was going to be ON the test, even though it was not due to be taught UNTIL May!

Having worked at a recognized "at risk" school because of the poverty, this test didn't improve the school, the students or the community. All it did was add stress to their already stressful lives; and stress to a challenging profession.

Plus we lost an entire month of learning in many subjects. I taught fourth grade that year. By the end of the year, every student in my classroom (even my special education students) knew how to outline a chapter. If you think learning to outline a chapter is easy....try teaching it! But for their further education, it is a skill that must be mastered.

Secondly, I tutored a third grader who flunked the reading test and had to re-take it. She is very smart but the Language Arts area is never going to be her "forte' ". Her self esteem was SHATTERED. She was the only one in her classroom to NOT pass. She knew it. If she knew, you know the other students did too. Tutoring her, I was able to teach her some reading skills that helped her pass the second test. I had to constantly re-assure her she was smart . She did pass. But what if she had failed it again? I'm not so sure, she wouldn't eventually have dropped out.

Why? A test that PROOVED she was stupid in her own eyes.

What non-educators seem to think is that TESTS are fool-proof means of measuring success. GOOD Educators know and understand the fallacy of this thinking. Not every person can take a test successfully. Many people suffer from test anxiety so severely that it makes them dysfunctional at the thought of taking one! It should not be the only means of proving educational success or failure.

What you need to do is let teachers teach and provide adequate funding.

Funding to either have smaller classroom sizes or an aide in all elementary classrooms. While 1 teacher to 22 students is better than what it was, it is still NOT ideal for this age group.

Not everyone learns the same way. But to expect all students to do so is unfair and they won't be successful as a result. Every student is going to have a subject they do not do well in. Just like they'll have their favorite subjects. It's called having strengths and weaknesses and we ALL have those. For them to be successful in those subjects they do not do well in and do not like, they need as close to 1 on 1 teaching as is possible.

Finally, I am the parent of a student who is learning disabled and in special education classes for his core subjects. The fact that they were requiring him to take these tests disturbed me greatly.

Learning disabled children are not stupid, but their minds most definitely work differently. To require them to pass this test to graduate is putting an unfair burden on their educators, the families of these students and the students themselves. Once again, you are causing so much stress to achieve a goal that you must ask yourself is it worth it?

Or are there better means to improving our schools and to helping our children?

I for one, had no problem with the testing of teachers. This gets the 'incompetents' out of the classroom.

Improved wages for this educated profession would do a great deal in attracting those from other professions that would like a change, and keep those already in the profession from leaving for "greener pastures". Educators, compared to other degreed professionals, work for a pittance. Yet, their degrees cost them just as much to obtain.

Implementing a program where big business works with the school districts providing a program for their employees to be a guest educator for a year or to become financial partners with a school district could be a very successful program.

What Washington needs to do is to get away from their locked in mentality that this "test" is the ONLY way to ensure equality among all Americans. Because, it isn't and it never will be. The school districts and the families who have money will always test higher and better because they have 1. the funding and 2. a family structure that supports education in place already.

You want to know how to improve education? Well, go to the professionals and ask. Educators are known for their creativity. I'm sure there are many wonderful, workable ideas out there.

Ideas better than a standardized test!

Signed an overworked, stressed out TEXAS educator

END OF ONE YEAR UPDATE.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
This came via email. As a retired educator I believe in the education of our children. But this "campaign" has always bothered me. While it is a lofty goal, I'm not sure it is in reality obtainable.

Some children are never going to be 'school' oriented. But they can still be creative contributors to society. Some children are learning to overcome and compensate for legitimate learning disabilities.

Then to put so much pressure on students to pass a 'standardized' test and to fit into "politicians" round hole slot is often times just not realistic or fair. While life is often not fair, we can at least attempt to allow for the uniqueness of every individual.

We square pegs deserve to have our square slots! This is why I have been in favor of doing away with the traditional K-12 setting and allowing children to work at their own speed~~whether accelerated or slower for each subject so actual MASTERY is achieved.

Anyway, enough.....read the following, knowing it is tongue-in-cheek; but it isn't that far off!

C~B~N

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is so GREAT, and it puts the RIDICULOUSNESS of the "No Child Left Behind" nonsense into perspective. Whether you're a teacher or the friend of one, I hope you'll appreciate the analogy. Be sure to read to the end...

No Dentist Left Behind

My dentist is great! He sends me reminders so I don't forget checkups. He uses the latest techniques based on research. He never hurts me, and I've got all my teeth.

When I ran into him the other day, I was eager to see if he'd heard about the new state program. I knew he'd think it was great.

"Did you hear about the new state program to measure effectiveness of dentists with their young patients?" I said.

" No," he said. He didn't seem too thrilled. "How will they do that?"

"It's quite simple," I said. "They will just count the number of cavities each patient has at age 10, 14, and 18 and average that to determine a dentist's rating. Dentists will be rated as excellent, good, average, below average, and unsatisfactory. That way parents will know which are the best dentists. The plan will also encourage the less effective dentists to get better," I said. "Poor dentists who don't improve could lose their licenses to practice."

"That's terrible," he said.

"What? That's not a good attitude," I said. "Don't you think we should try to improve children's dental health in this state?"

"Sure I do," he said, "but that's not a fair way to determine who is practicing good dentistry."

"Why not?" I said. "It makes perfect sense to me."

"Well, it's so obvious," he said. "Don't you see that dentists don't all work with the same clientele, and that much depends on things we can't control? For example, I work in a rural area with a high percentage of patients from deprived homes, while some of my colleagues work in upper middle-class neighborhoods. Many of the parents I work with don't bring their children to see me until there is some kind of problem, and I don't get to do much preventive work.

Also many of the parents I serve let their kids eat way too much candy from an early age, unlike more educated parents who understand the relationship between sugar and decay.

To top it all off, so many of my clients have well water, which is untreated and has no fluoride in it. Do you have any idea how much difference early use of fluoride can make?"

"It sounds like you're making excuses," I said. "I can't believe that you, my dentist, would be so defensive. After all, you do a great job, and you needn't fear a little accountability."

"I am not being defensive!" he said. "My best patients are as good as anyone's, my work is as good as anyone's, but my average cavity count is going to be higher than a lot of other dentists because I chose to work where I am needed most."

"Don't' get touchy," I said.

"Touchy?" he said. His face had turned red, and from the way he was clenching and unclenching his jaws, I was afraid he was going to damage his teeth. "Try furious! In a system like this, I will end up being rated average, below average, or worse. The few educated patients I have who see these ratings may believe this so-called rating is an actual measure of my ability and proficiency as a dentist. They may leave me, and I'll be left with only the most needy patients. And my cavity average score will get even worse. On top of that, how will I attract good dental hygienists and other excellent dentists to my practice if it is labeled below average?"

"I think you are overreacting," I said. "'Complaining, excuse-making and stonewalling won't improve dental health'...I am quoting from a leading member of the DOC," I noted.

"What's the DOC?" he asked.

"It's the Dental Oversight Committee," I said, "a group made up of mostly lay persons to make sure dentistry in this state gets improved."

"Spare me," he said, "I can't believe this. Reasonable people won't buy it," he said hopefully.

The program sounded reasonable to me, so I asked, "How else would you measure good dentistry?"

Come watch me work," he said. "Observe my processes."

"That's too complicated, expensive and time-consuming," I said."Cavities are the bottom line, and you can't argue with the bottom line. It's an absolute measure."

"That's what I'm afraid my parents and prospective patients will think. This can't be happening," he said despairingly.

"Now, now," I said, "don't despair. The state will help you some."

"How?" he asked.

"If you receive a poor rating, they'll send a dentist who is rated excellent to help straighten you out," I said brightly.

You mean," he said, "they'll send a dentist with a wealthy clientele to show me how to work on severe juvenile dental problems with which I have probably had much more experience?
BIG HELP!"

"There you go again," I said. "You aren't acting professionally at all."

"You don't get it," he said. "Doing this would be like grading schools and teachers on an average score made on a test of children's progress with no regard to influences outside the school, the home, the community served and stuff like that. Why would they do something so unfair to dentists? No one would ever think of doing that to schools."

I just shook my head sadly, but he had brightened. "I'm going to write my representatives and senators," he said. "I'll use the school analogy. Surely they will see the point."

He walked off with that look of hope mixed with fear and suppressed anger that I, a teacher, see in the mirror so often lately.

****If you don't understand why educators resent the recent federal NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT, this may help. If you do understand, you'll enjoy this analogy.****


~~~~~~More from C~B~N~~~~~~

The month of April is not a teaching month....it is the "teach the test" month. So we lose a WHOLE MONTH of REAL teaching thus our children fall further behind.

Some of the testing items will not even be taught until MAY. So, a crash course on those subjects must be done in March; therefore, March's curriculum is not thoroughly learned either.

Personally, I think we should implement a "No Politician Left" program myself. Let's make sure they meet or exceed OUR expectations or they "GET LEFT BEHIND"....at the voting booths!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Interesting......perhaps they are starting to LISTEN!

from Agape Press

by Jim Brown

...Two prominent Republican senators are pushing legislation intended to rip the bureaucratic red tape out of American education.

Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Jim DeMint of South Carolina marked the fifth anniversary of the signing of the No Child Left Behind Act by offering an alternative to the law Congress is getting ready to reauthorize.

In a speech at the Heritage Foundation, the two discussed a bill they are sponsoring called "The A+ Act of 2007."

Cornyn says the education reform measure will move decision-making power out of Washington and situate it closer to parents and teachers. "It will allow the states to choose the programs that best serve their students' needs," he says, "and it will empower parents and teachers with greater influence in what happens in classrooms across America every day."

The Texas senator says it is time to restore to the states and to local communities "the freedom and responsibility to achieve desired results without the Washington-mandated baggage of the status quo."

That, he says, "is where the responsibility belongs." According to Cornyn, since the federal government has been involved in K-12 education, it has consistently mandated larger and more intricate bureaucracy in the education system.

{Bigger DOES NOT mean Better! C~B~N}

Top of Page

Labels:

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Online charitable giving the easy way

I've been going to the breast cancer site
and clicking on their "click here to
give--it's free" button for over a year
now. You click the button, and sponsors
donate $ that will donate free
mammograms to low income women.

Recently they have added TABS to their site.

And now with one click, you can get

sponsors to donate to:

Hunger, Child Health, Literacy, Rain forest,

and Animal Rescue.

This is something that takes less than 5

minutes a day to complete. It doesn't cost
YOU anything but your time to click the buttons.

But it is a way to contribute back for
worthy causes through sponsorships.

So check it out and click, click, click!!!


Click to Give


Top of Page

Labels:

Donate your frequent flyer miles

Donate your frequent flyer miles to soldiers and their families!


Top of Page

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Interesting Reading

It's true!!!!
Fbbalregstaed eudactor C~B~N!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy,

it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a
wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the
frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The
rset can be a total mses and you can
sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae
the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef,
but the wrod as a wlohe.

Amzanig huh?

A Minotuan Wgins Mnmeot #3323

Top of Page

Labels:

Billionaires up, America down

[C~B~N really likes Holly Sklar's writing. She has
done her research and wields a might pen! The
government ought to listen....]

By Holly Sklar
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune News Service
Copyright (c) 2007 Holly Sklar

When it comes to producing billionaires, America
is doing great.

Until 2005, multimillionaires could still make the Forbes
list of the 400 richest Americans. In 2006, the Forbes 400
went billionaires only.

This year, you'd need a Forbes 482 to fit all the
billionaires.

A billion dollars is a lot of dough. Queen Elizabeth II,
British monarch for five decades, would have to add $400
million to her $600 million fortune to reach $1 billion. And
she'd need another $300 million to reach the Forbes 400
minimum of $1.3 billion. The average Forbes 400 member
has $3.8 billion.

When the Forbes 400 began in 1982, it was dominated
by oil and manufacturing fortunes. Today, says Forbes,
"Wall Street is king."

Nearly half the 45 new members, says Forbes, "made
their fortunes in hedge funds and private equity. Money
manager John Paulson joins the list after pocketing more
than $1 billion short-selling subprime credit this summer."

The 25th anniversary of the Forbes 400 isn't party time
for America.

We have a record 482 billionaires -- and record foreclosures.

We have a record 482 billionaires -- and a record 47
million people without any health insurance.

Since 2000, we have added 184 billionaires -- and 5
million more people living below the poverty line.

The official poverty threshold for one person was a
ridiculously low $10,294 in 2006. That won't get you two
pounds of caviar ($9,800) and 25 cigars ($730) on the
Forbes Cost of Living Extremely Well Index.

The $20,614 family-of-four poverty threshold is
lower than the cost of three months of home flower
arrangements ($24,525).

Wealth is being redistributed from poorer to richer.

Between 1983 and 2004, the average wealth of the
top 1 percent of households grew by 78 percent, reports
Edward Wolff, professor of economics at New York
University. The bottom 40 percent lost 59 percent.

In 2004, one out of six households had zero or negative
net worth. Nearly one out of three households had less
than $10,000 in net worth, including home equity.
That's before the mortgage crisis hit.

In 1982, when the Forbes 400 had just 13 billionaires,
the highest paid CEO made $108 million and the
average full-time worker made $34,199, adjusted for
inflation in 2006.

Last year, the highest paid hedge fund manager
hauled in $1.7 billion, the highest paid CEO made
$647 million, and the average worker made $34,861,
with vanishing health and pension coverage.

The Forbes 400 is even more of a rich men's club
than when it began. The number of women has dropped
from 75 in 1982 to 39 today.

The 400 richest Americans have a conservatively
estimated $1.54 trillion in combined wealth. That
amount is more than 11 percent of our $13.8 trillion
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) -- the total annual value
of goods and services produced by our nation of 303
million people. In 1982, Forbes 400 wealth measured
less than 3 percent of U.S. GDP.

And the rich, notes Fortune magazine, "give away a
smaller share of their income than the rest of us."
[C~B~N has found that to be true. The truly rich are the
absolute worst 'tippers' of anyone! ...Yes, I have had some
interesting jobs through-out my life! Each one has taught
me something!]

Thanks to mega-tax cuts, the rich can afford more
mega-yachts, accessorized with helicopters and
mini-submarines. Meanwhile, the infrastructure of
bridges, levees, mass transit, parks and other public
assets inherited from earlier generations of taxpayers
crumbles from neglect, and the holes in the safety net
are growing.

The top 1 percent of households -- average income
$1.5 million -- will save a collective $79.5 billion on
their 2008 taxes, reports Citizens for Tax Justice.

That's more than the combined budgets of the
Transportation Department, Small Business
Administration, Environmental Protection Agency
and Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Tax cuts will save the top 1 percent a projected $715
billion between 2001 and 2010. And cost us $715 billion
in mounting national debt plus interest.

The children and grandchildren of today's underpaid
workers will pay for the partying of today's plutocrats
and their retinue of lobbyists.

It's time for Congress to roll back tax cuts for the wealthy
and close the loophole letting billionaire hedge fund
speculators pay taxes at a lower rate than their
secretaries.

[I think we need to forget raising the minimum wage.
I think we need to get a law on the books that
guarantees American workers the
RIGHT to a LIVING WAGE. Therefore
insuring a cost of living increase each
year.]

Inequality has roared back to 1920s levels.

It was bad for our nation then.

It's bad for our nation now.

Holly Sklar is co-author of "Raise the Floor: Wages and
Policies That Work for All of Us" and "A Just Minimum
Wage: Good for Workers, Business and Our Future."
She can be reached at hsklar@aol.com.
Copyright (c) 2007 Holly Sklar

Top of Page

Labels:

Charitable Giving

Welcome to www.CardsThatGive.org, the non-profit site that makes it simple to select greeting cards sold by charities.

Americans purchase nearly 7 billion greeting cards each year, generating nearly $7.5 billion in retail sales.*

If it were easy for families to buy their greeting cards from non-profit organizations, card sales could generate millions of dollars for worthy causes.

That is the premise behind CardsThatGive.org.

CardsThatGive.org directs you to dozens of effective non-profit organizations that sell greeting cards to help fund their charitable work.

[What an easy way to "give"! C~B~N]

Top of Page

Labels:

Supporting Our Troops

No matter your "stance" on America's involvement
around the world...these are men and women who are
willing to die for your freedom. Most will not be able to
come home for Christmas.

The holidays are a time for family. This can bring
about depression.

Therefore, want to show your support?

Here are some ways to do so:

AAFES Gift Certificates
www.aafes.com/docs/homefront.htm

The Army and Air Force Exchange Services is where
most servicemen and women do their shopping.
You can purchase gift certificates for those in Iraq
and those hospitalized.


Adopt a Platoon
http://www.adoptaplatoon.org/

Adopt a Platoon has several ongoing projects
to ensure that no soldier overseas walks away
from mail call empty-handed.


AnySoldier
http://www.anysoldier.com/

Any Soldier is a non-profit organization that helps
people send care packages to members of the armed
services in Iraq.



Appreciate Our Troops
http://www.appreciateourtroops.org/

Purchase a Support Our Troops mug and a free
personalized mug will be given to a current or former
service member.



Blue Star Mothers
http://www.bluestarmothers.org/

The Blue Star Mothers was founded by
service members' moms during World War II.
Any mother with a son or daughter in the military
can join.



Books For Soldiers
www.booksforsoldiers.com/

Help the troops escape boredom by donating
some books. You can also donate DVDs and CDs
requested by soldiers.



Camp Doha
www.campdoha.org/

Camp Doha provides valuable information for
those about to deploy, their friends and families
and anyone who wants to support the troops.



Cell Phones for Soldiers

Donated cell phones are recycled and turned into
cash. The cash is used to purchase calling cards for
soldiers in Iraq.




America Supports You

Thank any service member stationed throughout
the U.S. and the world with an e-mail.



Fisher House
http://www.fisherhouse.org/

The Fisher House Foundation donates comfort
homes, built on the grounds of major military
and VA medical centers. These homes enable
family members to be close to a loved one
during hospitalization for an unexpected illness,
disease, or injury.



Freedom Calls
http://www.freedomcalls.org/

The Freedom Calls Foundation is helping
families videoconference with their loved ones
in Iraq. You can donate money to help keep
this project going.



Groceries for Families
www.commissaries.com/certificheck

The men and women who lay down their lives
for us are terribly underpaid. Help a family
by purchasing gift certificates to the commissary.



Homes for Our Troops
http://www.homesforourtroops.org/

Homes for Our Troops assists injured veterans
and their immediate families by building new or
adapting existing homes with handicapped
accessibility.



Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund
www.intrepidmuseum.org/pages/intrepidfoundation

The Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund provides grants
to the families of servicemen and women who died in
Iraq. You can donate online, through mail or by calling
a toll-free number.



Military Moms
http://www.militarymoms.net/

This site provides support to all of the moms out
there who has a son or daughter in the military.



MilitarySpace
http://www.military-space.org/

This social networking site focuses on
communications with deployed troops and
family members, support groups and pen-pals.


MarineParents
http://www.marineparents.com/

MarineParents is a place for parents of Marines
to meet up. You'll find advice, support and information.




Operation: A Bit of Home
http://www.operationabitofhome.com/

Operation: A Bit of Home supports over 150 different
soldiers per day by providing necessary and
hard-to-get toiletries.



Operation Air Conditioner
http://www.operationac.com/

Operation Air Conditioner provides not only air
conditioners but space heaters (the desert is cold in
the winter) for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.



Operation Dear Abby
anyservicemember.navy.mil

The U.S. Navy and Dear Abby have teamed up.
Their site allows you to send e-mail messages of support
to service members.



Operation Give
http://www.operationgive.org/

Operation Give provides toys, clothing and school
supplies primarily to the children of Iraq and
Afghanistan.



Operation Gratitude
http://www.opgratitude.com/

Operation Gratitude provides a way for you to
show your respect and appreciation for the troops.
It sends care packages and letters to troops stationed
overseas.



Operation Hero Miles
http://www.heromiles.org/

You can donate your unused frequent flier miles
to help soldiers travel on emergency leave. They are
also used to help families fly to hospitalized soldiers.



Operation Interdependence
http://www.oidelivers.org/

Operation Interdependence supplies care
packages to deployed soldiers. You can help out by
providing goods, coordinating efforts or donating funds.


Operation Iraqi Children
http://www.operationiraqichildren.org/

Many soldiers are rebuilding schools in Iraq and
scrounging around for school supplies. Help by
donating a school supplies kit.



Operation Kids for Troops
http://www.kids4troops.com/

Write directly to men and women serving overseas in
combat areas. Or place the names of loved ones serving
overseas on the "OKFT Hero List" to receive
encouraging mail. [This is a GREAT ONE for classrooms
to participate in!]



Operation Top Knot
http://www.operationtopknot.com/

This group of Soldiers' Angels volunteers
help support the wives and children of U.S. soldiers.
Volunteers make baby blankets, booties and other
handmade gifts. Everything is handmade!


Operation Uplink
http://www.operationuplink.org/

Donate money to Operation Uplink. The money
is used to purchase phone cards so servicemen and
women can call home.



Packages From Home
http://www.packagesfromhome.org/

Packages From Home sends personal care and
comfort items to U.S. troops deployed overseas.
Find out how to donate time, money or items
to this non-profit organization.


Soldiers' Angels
www.soldiersangels.org/heroes/index.php

Become some soldier's angel by adopting a service
member.



Treats for Troops
http://www.treatsfortroops.com/

Treats for Troops helps get you provide packages to
your loved ones overseas. If you don't know
anyone, the Foster-A-Soldier Program matches you
with a registered soldier by branch of service, home
state, gender, or birthday - or you can choose to
sponsor a group of soldiers.



US Central Command
http://www.centcom.mil/

Find out what the Coalition is doing. U.S. Central
Command features up-to-date information on Operation
Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.



USO Cares
http://www.usocares.org/

You can sponsor care packages provided by the USO
with a $25 donation.



Hire a Hero
hireahero.com

Is designed to help returning veterans find
employment making the transition back to civilian life
easier! Post your jobs here for them!



Merry Christmas!


Top of Page

Labels:

Ben Stein's Last Column...

How Can Someone Who Lives in Insane Luxury Be a Star in Today's World?

As I begin to write this, I "slug" it, as we writers say, which means I put a heading on top of the document to identify it. This heading is "eonlineFINAL," and it gives me a shiver to write it. I have been doing this column for so long that I cannot even recall when I started. I loved writing this column so much for so long I came to believe it would never end.


It worked well for a long time, but gradually, my changing as a person and the world's change have overtaken it. On a small scale, Morton's, while better than ever, no longer attracts as many stars as it used to. It still brings in the rich people in droves and definitely some stars.

I saw Samuel L. Jackson there a few days ago, and we had a nice visit, and right before that, I saw and had a splendid talk with Warren Beatty in an elevator, in which we agreed that Splendor in the Grass was a super movie. But Morton's is not the star galaxy it once was, though it probably will be again.

Beyond that, a bigger change has happened. I no longer think Hollywood stars are terribly important. They are uniformly pleasant, friendly people, and they treat me better than I deserve to be treated.

But a man or woman who makes a huge wage for memorizing lines and reciting them in front of a camera is no longer my idea of a shining star we should all look up to. [C~B~N would add that SPORTS stars should be here as well. While I enjoy the occasional game, I don't think they are "stars" either!]

How can a man or woman who makes an eight-figure wage and lives in insane luxury really be a star in today's world, if by a "star" we mean someone bright and powerful and attractive as a role model?


Real stars are not riding around in the backs of limousines or in Porsches or getting trained in yoga or Pilates and eating only raw fruit while they have Vietnamese girls do their nails.
They can be interesting, nice people, but they are not heroes to me any longer.


A real star is the soldier of the 4th Infantry Division who poked his head into a hole on a farm near Tikrit, Iraq. He could have been met by a bomb or a hail of AK-47 bullets. Instead, he faced an abject Saddam Hussein and the gratitude of all of the decent people of the world.

A real star is the U.S. soldier who was sent to disarm a bomb next to a road north of Baghdad. He approached it, and the bomb went off and killed him.


A real star, the kind who haunts my memory night and day, is the U.S. soldier in Baghdad who saw a little girl playing with a piece of unexploded ordnance on a street near where he was guarding a station. He pushed her aside and threw himself on it just as it exploded. He left a family desolate in California and a little girl alive in Baghdad.


The stars who deserve media attention are not the ones who have lavish weddings on TV but the ones who patrol the streets of Mosul even after two of their buddies were murdered and their bodies battered and stripped for the sin of trying to protect Iraqis from terrorists.

We put couples with incomes of $100 million a year on the covers of our magazines. The noncoms and officers who barely scrape by on military pay but stand on guard in Afghanistan and Iraq and on ships and in submarines and near the Arctic Circle are anonymous as they live and die.

I am no longer comfortable being a part of the system that has such poor values, and I do not want to perpetuate those values by pretending that who is eating at Morton's is a big subject.


There are plenty of other stars in the American firmament...the policemen and women who go off on patrol in South Central and have no idea if they will return alive; the orderlies and paramedics who bring in people who have been in terrible accidents and prepare them for surgery; the teachers and nurses who throw their whole spirits into caring for autistic children; the kind men and women who work in hospices and in cancer wards.

Think of each and every fireman who was running up the stairs at the World Trade Center as the towers began to collapse. Now you have my idea of a real hero.


I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters. This is my highest and best use as a human.

I can put it another way. Years ago, I realized I could never be as great an actor as Olivier or as good a comic as Steve Martin...or Martin Mull or Fred Willard--or as good an economist as Samuelson or Friedman or as good a writer as Fitzgerald. Or even remotely close to any of them.


But I could be a devoted father to my son, husband to my wife and, above all, a good son to the parents who had done so much for me. This came to be my main task in life.

I did it moderately well with my son, pretty well with my wife and well indeed with my parents (with my sister's help). I cared for and paid attention to them in their declining years. I stayed with my father as he got sick, went into extremis and then into a coma and then entered immortality with my sister and me reading him the Psalms.

This was the only point at which my life touched the lives of the soldiers in Iraq or the firefighters in New York. I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters and that it is my duty, in return for the lavish life God has devolved upon me, to help others He has placed in my path. This is my highest and best use as a human.



Faith is not believing that God can. It is knowing that God will.


Top of Page

Labels:

Monday, September 03, 2007

Raising the Minimum Wage

Congress values own paychecks more than workers



By Holly Sklar
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services
6/20/06
Copyright © 2006 Holly Sklar
[Blogged with permission.]

Members of Congress like to talk about values. They sure don't mean the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

While more and more hardworking Americans struggle to make ends meet, Congress showed what it really values -- the rising value of congressional pay.

The House refused to block the $3,300 "cost of living adjustment" that will raise congressional pay on Jan. 1 to $168,500 -- not counting great health benefits, pensions and perks.

Congressional pay raises between 1997 and 2007 will add up to $34,900. That's more than average workers make in a year.

It would take more than three workers to make $34,900 at the minimum wage stuck at $5.15 an hour -- just $10,712 a year -- since Sept. 1, 1997.

Full-time workers at minimum wage make less than $900 a month to pay rent, food, healthcare, gas and everything else. No wonder the U.S. Conference of Mayors Hunger and Homelessness Survey found that 40 percent of adults requesting emergency food assistance were employed, as were 15 percent of the homeless.

Childcare workers and security guards struggle to care for their own children. EMTs and health care aides can't afford to take sick days.

Yet Congress has given itself raise after raise, while giving none to minimum wage workers.

As Adam Smith himself wrote in "The Wealth of Nations,"
"It is but equity … that those who feed, clothe, and lodge the whole body of the people, should have such a share of the produce of their own labor as to be themselves tolerably well fed, clothed, and lodged."

Today's minimum wage workers have less buying power than minimum wage workers did back in 1950 when Harry Truman was president. The 1950 minimum wage is $6.30 in 2006 dollars, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Inflation Calculator.

It would take $9.31 today to match the value of the minimum wage of 1968. It takes nearly two minimum wage workers to make what one worker made four decades ago.

The minimum wage has become a poverty wage instead of an anti-poverty wage. This has ripple effects far beyond minimum wage workers and their families.

The minimum wage sets the wage floor. When the minimum wage sinks, it drags down wages for workers up the pay scale as well. Between 1968 and 2005, worker productivity rose 111 percent, but the average hourly wage fell 5 percent, adjusting for inflation, and the minimum wage fell 43 percent.

The inflation-adjusted earnings of college-educated workers have fallen since 2000. Poverty rates are higher now than in the 1970s and we have an increasingly low-wage workforce instead of a growing middle class.

Contrary to myth, raising the minimum wage helps business and boosts the economy. We had high economic growth, low inflation, low unemployment and declining poverty rates after the last minimum wage hikes in 1996 and 1997.

States that have raised their minimum wages above the increasingly inadequate $5.15 federal level have had better employment trends than the other states, including for retail businesses and small businesses.

Higher wages increase consumer purchasing power, reduce costly employee turnover, and improve productivity and the quality of products and services.

For example, In-N-Out Burger, home of the nation's first drive-through hamburger stand, ranks first nationwide among fast food chains in overall excellence, food flavor, quality and customer service. Their entry-level wage of $9 is nearly $4 above the federal minimum wage.

Small business owner Malcolm Davis wrote in a letter to the editor, "My lowest-paid employee makes $8 per hour. … If I can find a way to be fair with my employees in rural Eastern North Carolina, why can't our government?"

A recent survey by the National Consumers League and Fleishman-Hillard Communications found that 76 percent of American consumers believe "how well a company treats/pays employees influences what they buy." Consumers said "commitment to employees" is the strongest proof of corporate responsibility and it is important for companies to ensure that workers "are paid a living wage."

A job should keep you out of poverty, not keep you in it.

It's time for Congress to stop their luxury raises, and raise the minimum wage to a living wage.


Holly Sklar is co-author of "A Just Minimum Wage: Good for Workers, Business and Our Future" (Let Justice Roll) and "Raise the Floor: Wages and Policies That Work for All Of Us."


Top of Page

Labels:

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Big TV

from Mountain wings #6265

Dr. James Twitchell, author of "The
Carnival Culture", says that in our
culture "the average boy or girl will
spend more time in front of the
electronic babysitter by the time they
are age six than they will in
conversation with their father...
for the REST OF THEIR LIVES."

The average male in the United
States will not read a single book
cover to cover after they leave high
school.

The average person spends four hours
a day watching television.

So, if you live to be 72 years old,
that's a dozen years of your life you
will spend watching OTHER people
become millionaires.

Zig Ziglar calls TV the "income
reducer and the morality buster."

Jim Rome says that "poor people have
big TVs, rich people have big libraries."

Gene Roddenbery, the creator of Star Trek,
was giving a commencement address
at Indiana University. He said, "Television
exists for one reason and one reason only."
To entertain? To inform? To educate?"

No, to SELL you something."

Think about it!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
C~B~N gave up TV as I couldn't justify spending the money on it. In other words, it is a luxury....and if you can't afford to pay all your bills, then you give UP the luxuries. I don't know how poor people afford cable and big screen TVs!

At any rate, after 3 months withdrawal, I don't even miss it now. This household has been TV-free for 3 years and 7 months.

We spend $15 a year for a library card to the large town 4 miles away so we can check out books and the occasional video.

Cheap investment if you ask me!
C~B~N


Top of Page

Labels:

Saturday, August 18, 2007

The Sanctity of Life, Not.

Abortion led to Terry Schiavo which will lead to the termination of other mentally challenged individuals which will then lead to those who are terminally ill which will lead to those who are no longer productive members of society, the elderly who just sap the SSI system and insurance etc.

America no longer respects the sanctity of LIFE.

Abortion has led to the belief that life is NOT sacred. Therefore how can we criticize the young, violent men who take that which they want violently?

If you die because your car is being carjacked, or your home robbed, or being mugged; oh well....too bad. Your life is not precious~~ not in a nation that has taught our young people that abortions don't kill human beings.....why be all surprised when the young people don't recognize ANY life as sacred then??????

You reap what you sow; this nation has sown death to the innocent. She now reaps death for ALL.

Top of Page

Labels:

Have We Lost the Culture War?

By Joe Murray
[C~B~N's comments enclosed]

It's a story we have heard all too often. Girl goes to school. Girl studies extremely hard. Girl becomes valedictorian of her class. Girl asked to address her classmates at her graduation ceremony. Girl wants to thank her family and her friends. Girl wants to acknowledge the Hand of God in her success. High school pulls the plug on girl's microphone. Girl is censored. [Whatcha bet if she were Muslim this wouldn't have happened? ]

Turn back the hands of time only 50 years and this story would have caused a public outcry so loud that Cindy Sheehan would have been green with envy. In post-Western America, however, this story is lucky to raise a few eyebrows.

To those at the helm of the "mainstream" media, this story is info-tainment. Put simply, this news piece, the story of a Nevada teen standing firm for her convictions, is told for the cultural amusement of our societal elitists who look upon Christians as relics that should be displayed alongside the bones of a T-Rex in the American Museum of Natural History.

Enter the Brave New World.

"It is the duty of all Nations," thundered George Washington, "to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favors." To Washington, obedience to God would ensure a prosperous and free America. God was the rock upon which our liberties rested. How far we have fallen from the standard espoused by President Washington.

Washington's America is no longer the America of today. The Judeo-Christian compass that once guided our leaders and citizens has been displaced. A new moral order, one fueled by hedonism and a mutated form of individualism, [see the Keith Ellison story below "Oath of Office" as confirmation!] has taken its place. Translation: Christians have become strangers in their own country.

What is the state of our Union's culture?

Poor.

In regards to Christian values, Jesus has not just been moved to the back of the bus, he has been thrown out the emergency exit door. Not only has talk of Jesus, and His Church, been evicted from public discourse, but Jesus has become a favorite target of a cultural elite who have grown intolerant of His nagging presence. [They don't like His truths because if His truths ARE true, then they are sinners headed for damnation.]

On the Fox animated series Family Guy, Jesus was shown as a buffoon who did nothing more than inane magic tricks. On Comedy Central's South Park, Jesus is a half-baked televangelist. Gone are the days of Charlton Heston and The Ten Commandants and here are the days of Tom Hanks and the Da Vinci Code. [I love Tom Hanks' films and Ron Howards' directing; but I was so disappointed these men chose to do this one.]

The cultural pogroms are well under way and Christians are in the cross-hairs.

If one digs deeper into the cultural psyche of America, he will find that Christianity no longer sets the standard for proper human behavior. The Sodomy Squadron has been flying high, for the Supreme Court has deemed sodomy a fundamental right, the Federal Marriage Amendment was DOA, and Massachusetts strong-armed the Catholic Church into ceasing its adoption program when it demanded that a Catholic agency allow same-sex couples to adopt children under the care of the Roman Catholic Church.

In the political sphere, traditionalists have been hit even harder. Despite the fact that the GOP has control of Congress and the White House, this year's "America's Values Agenda" has failed to spread its wings. While the Flag Burning Amendment was only narrowly defeated, the bill to protected the words "one nation under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance became a political Hindenburg. As reported by Associated Press, "Republicans could not muster a simple majority on the issue in a committee where they outnumber Democrats by six."

And the final nail in America's cultural coffin? The American public. In a poll recently conducted by Gallup, just 48 percent of Americans believe that the federal government should "be involved in promoting moral values." Another 48 percent believe the feds should mind its own business. Thus, we have become a nation home to two different peoples, and we Christians constitute the counter-culture.

In 1992 Pat Buchanan declared, "[t]here is a religious war going on in our country for the soul of America. It is a cultural war, as critical to the kind of nation we will one day be as was the Cold War itself." Thus we have to ask this question: does Christianity's fall to the status of a "counter-culture" mean that the white flag should be raised and the troops sent home?

Not a chance.

When Napoleon marched on Moscow in 1812 to eliminate the Russian threat to his European hegemony, the 500,000 soldiers accompanying him made the French seem unstoppable. Following the bloody Battle of Borodino, which left over 100,000 French and Russian dead, Napoleon made the Czar's Kremlin bedroom his own, positioned his troops within the ruins of Moscow, and waited for the Czar's surrender; and wait he did. With the harshness of the Russian winter staring Napoleon in the eye and no signs of the Moscow's white flag, Napoleon was forced to begin one of the worst retreats in military history. Napoleon may have had the manpower, but he did not have the staying power.

Washington proclaimed, "[o]f all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports." That, my friends, is the key to victory in this culture war.

Yes, the Left has waged an ideological Borodino, is sitting atop the ruins of Washington, and is waiting for the white flag to be raised; but the Left, just like Napoleon, lacks the necessary staying power. Traditionalists, on the other hand, are armed with a secret weapon -- faith in God and a belief in absolute Truths. It is the faith of our Fathers that will sustain us, and it is our unyielding devotion that will run these folks out of DC.

Ben Franklin once mused, "[r]ebellion against tyrants is obedience to God." As this author writes, the other side of the cultural divide is devouring its own with the self-destructive policies it espouses. A Russian winter is looking it in the eye; time is its enemy. Retreat is inevitable and when it begins, the words of Ben Franklin will ring true.

Joe Murray (jrm1835@gmail.com) is a civil rights attorney residing in New Jersey. Murray is a former staff attorney for the American Family Association and has also served as national director of correspondence for Patrick J. Buchanan's 2000 presidential bid. Murray has been a guest on numerous radio and television talk shows, including the O'Reilly Factor.


Top of Page

Labels:

The (Culture) War of the WORD

By Dennis Prager

A number of years ago I discovered a root cause of America's culture war. It came to me as I debated professor Alan Dershowitz about issues of Jewish concern before a 1,000 Jews at the 92nd Street "Y" in New York City. With the exception of support for Israel, Dershowitz, a Harvard liberal, and I agreed on nothing, political or religious. Toward the end of the evening I came to understand why.

"Ladies and gentlemen," I announced, "the major difference between Alan Dershowitz and me is this: When professor Dershowitz differs with the Torah, he assumes that he is right and the Torah is wrong. When I differ with the Torah, I assume that I am wrong and the Torah is right." Dershowitz responded that for the first time that evening he agreed with me.

That realization was an epiphany for me. I have come to realize that the great divide in values is not between those who believe in God and those who do not but between those who believe in a divine text and those who do not.

This explains in large measure the great culture war in the United States. Americans, of course, are divided not so much by religion as between right and left. Jews and Christians on the left agree with each other on just about every political and social question, and Jews and Christians on the right do the same.

So what distinguishes leftist Jews from rightist Jews and leftist Christians from rightist Christians? It essentially comes down to their belief in the Bible, not their belief in God.

Jews who believe that the Torah is from God agree on almost every important issue of life with Christians who believe that the Torah — and the rest of the Old Testament — is divine. Jews who believe that men (and perhaps women) wrote the Torah agree on virtually every important issue with Christians who also regard the Torah (and the rest of the Bible) as man-made.

For example, as a religious (though non-Orthodox) Jew, I have many differences with Christians' theology. We differ on the Trinity; the divinity of Jesus; the identity of the messiah; the role of Torah, not to mention rabbinic law, on who is and who is not saved; and on such matters as faith versus works. Yet these theological differences cause almost no difference in our social and moral values, which are almost identical.

Why?

Because conservative Jews and Christians share the belief that God revealed a text (a text, moreover, that we share). At the same time, liberal Jews and liberal Christians share the belief that this text is man-made.

Jews and Christians who believe that God revealed the Torah, for example, are far more likely to believe that marriage must remain defined as only between a man and woman, and cannot be redefined to include members of the same sex. They believe that people are not basically good, that human life, not animal life, is sacred (because humans, not animals, are created in God's image), and that murderers should be liable to the death penalty (the only law that is in all five books of the Torah is to put murderers to death).

On the other hand, Jews and Christians who believe that people wrote the Torah are far more likely to support a redefinition of marriage, to view human nature as basically good (and therefore more likely to ascribe human evil to outside influences), to be more receptive to seeing human beings as essentially another animal, and to oppose capital punishment for murderers.

After all, what people, not God, wrote thousands of years ago should hardly serve as a guide to life today — especially when one's heart argues against it. The heart feels compassion for gays, for animals and even for murderers facing execution. And the heart wants to believe that human beings are basically good.

But Jews and Christians who believe in a divinely revealed Bible do not trust the heart as a guide to doing the right thing (indeed, that Bible repeatedly warns us not to). That difference — do I listen to my heart or to what I believe is God's word? — explains most of the differences between right and left. Much more than whether one believes in God.

By Dennis Prager, Dennis Prager's nationally syndicated radio show is heard daily in Los Angeles on KRLA-AM (870). He may be contacted through his website: Dennis Prager Townhall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I really like reading Dennis Prager's work. I found these two in my email "to be blogged" file which has too many in it! Ah, trying to balance work, family, worship, play, AND blogging can be a challenge! I do the best I can....
C~B~N


Top of Page

Labels: