by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Liberty -vs- Tyranny
Division within the GOP is stark and becoming more so with each passing day. The Tea Party wing of the GOP, while taking principled positions has been completely unyielding, therefore making any compromise virtually impossible. Rather than viewing compromise as the positive outcome of hard fought political battles they view compromise as total defeat. Ultimately, at least in the minds of the purist, this means advancing the march of the great evil bogeyman. I'm sure you all can guess what that is.
The Democratic party on the other hand is enjoying relative unity, a good thing for the party faithful going into the mid term elections in November 2014. Already controlling the Senate, as well as the presidency, the House may be up for grabs if the general electorate continues to view the GOP in an increasingly unfavorable light. Further, many in the GOP are starting to view their party more unfavorably as a result of the extreme rightward movement of their party, the result of Tea Party legislators and activists.
What this non partisan political junkie fears is a fierce leftward backlash in response to what has occurred, and continues to occur on the right. Few will argue (I think) that society will only let the ideological political pendulum swing only so far in either the rightward or the leftward direction before it will force a correction. Corrections can be very difficult, causing economic and social pain for extended periods of time. Recall the Roaring 20's, the concentration of wealth at the top, and the resulting collapse of the economy.
Principles such as hard work, integrity, preserving individual liberty, controlling the growth of government while at the same time insuring it works for the benefit of all the the people (I refer you to Thomas Paine and his writings), as well as recognizing change is the only certainly in life and we must act responsibly to changing circumstances and times are all worthwhile and worth working towards. However, the belief and desire to manage a nation of the size of the USA as though it were still 1776 and 1789 is nonsensical. The American people have registered this concern and the GOP to survive and continue to be a force in American politics and governance must realize this.
By the sounds of a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News Poll many in the GOP are beginning to understand the stakes involved. Making America strong and healthy requires dissent, consensus, compromise, and putting country above partisan politics.
... Democrats are largely content with their own party, while distaste among Republicans for the GOP has grown exponentially this year.
The most recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, offers a stark window into widening divisions within the GOP over strategy and what kind of leaders Republicans want going forward. The Democratic Party, by comparison, is a picture of unity.
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In December, just a month after the GOP experienced a string of election losses, nearly two-thirds of all Republicans held a positive view of their party. Ten months later that share has dropped to less than half.
Among those who are more wavering in their ties to the GOP—a group that is nearly twice the size of the party’s most fervent followers—affection for the party in the latest poll dropped to 35%, with almost an equal number saying they viewed the party in a negative light.
By comparison, nearly three-quarters of all Democrats in the poll said they have a positive view of their party, down just slightly since the end of last year. Even the more wavering among the Democrats are positive toward their party (61%).
The sharp divisions over political style with the GOP also have no corollary among Democrats.
A good example is Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, widely seen as a chief architect of the showdown that led to last month’s government shutdown.
In the poll, just 19% of non-tea party Republicans said they have a positive view of Mr. Cruz, exactly in line with the rest of the country. But a striking 69% of tea-party Republicans in the poll gave Mr. Cruz positive marks.
A similar break can be seen over the question of whether Republicans want their party members in Congress to make compromises to gain a consensus on budgetary matters, or stick to their positions even if this means no budget agreement.
Just under half of all Republicans favored compromise. But among tea-party Republicans, a solid 64% said Republicans in Congress should stick to their positions no matter what. Just a third of non-tea party Republicans took that stauncher position.
When the same question was asked of Democrats, a solid 68% favored compromise, with little variation among liberals and more wavering Democrats.
The overall sourness of public sentiment toward the political status quo has triggered another round of yearning for a potential third party.
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Do you have a positive or negative view of your own party?
Democrats: 73% positive, 7% negative
Republicans: 49% positive, 26% negative
Tea-party Republicans: 56% positive, 21% negative
Non tea party Republicans: 41% positive, 32% negative
Media has been focusing on the fundamentally flawed economic aspects of Obamacare. Few pundits have weighed in on the medical care and access that comes with this monstrous legislation.Moving beyond the Exchanges the reality of Obamacare confronts you when trying to enter this new mode of health care delivery. Traditionally physicians worked alongside nursing personnel to investigate a patient’s symptoms and provide a viable treatment plan to effectuate a solution to the presenting problem. Obamacare seeks to undo this model by introducing secondary health providers, such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants, for first contact. Complicated presenting complaints would be evaluated by people who have less than one third the training of an M.D. or D.O. American medicine has already taken a hit when investigations revealed many foreign MDs have markedly less education and practical patient experience than their American counterparts prior to licensing. Doctor Ezekial Emanual, one of the architects of Obamacare recently stated in an interview with Andy Dean: for Obamacare to be a viable entity, secondary personnel on the frontlines, is necessary if this model of health delivery is to work. In his opinion physicians are no longer needed to be present on first contact. This Harvard theorist is essentially requiring Americans to be lab animals in the Obamacare maze. Dr. Emanual’s attempt to re-fabricate American medicine has no support in studies or actual experience, only an untried theorem. Medical care will see a decline in the quality and quantity of services as the new system is implemented. Physicians will be forced to follow treatment plans that are cooked up by government bureaucrats, many of whom are not health providers. These treatment plans will become the new standards of care. A physician who deviates from them could lose his/her license, be hanged in effigy and even find themselves in a cold jail cell, for which there is significant precedent.
Under this massive new health care scheme systems will be streamlined to maximize services. Accessibility to ambulance and emergency services will be reduced for two reasons: increased demand and fewer units available for treatment. In the new book, Obamacare: Dead on Arrival, A Prescription for Disaster, it documents how people die when immediate services are not available.An infant drowns because the emergency management personnel had too many calls to answer on their shift. Chest pain leading to an acute heart attack was not treated on time because an emergency room was overwhelmed with patients seeking care. Surgeries on Demand will be a fine memory as the system introduces a new element into acute care, it is call waiting time. The gamut of surgical services may be available after weeks and or months of bureaucratic entanglement. Cutting edge drugs give way to a pharmacopeia of generics, many of which have been surpassed by newer medications. These drugs will not be available to you. Need an immediate CAT scan or MRI, with fewer units in existence, months may go by before your number is called. Obamacare guarantees three elements that will confound your utilization of its programs: higher costs, less access and poor service. Death panels are not written into the matrix of care. Instead, available medical services are slowed to a crawl, allowing those with curable and or manageable diseases to succumb at much higher rates than in the past. Welcome to Obamacare, worse than the present system it is replacing and deadly to your health. Mark Da
vis, MD author of the aforementioned book, Obamacare: Dead on Arrival, A Prescription for Disaster and the book lawyers hate most Demons of Democracy. President of Davis Book Reviews and Healthnets Review Services.
Can I get a hallelujah for the fact that its Friday? I'm hard at work getting ready for the big One Room Challenge reveal on Wednesday (light a candle that I can make the deadline) but I've got my girl Ashley from Meet me in Philadelphia to fess up today. Ashley not only creates amazing spaces in her own home (I want to copy her den inch by inch) but she also sells some of her killer finds on her Etsy shop. If you follow Ashley, you know why I crush on her so much. If I'm introducing you to her, your welcome. Take it away Ashley...
Happy Fess Up Friday, Little Black Door readers! I want to thank the awesome Elizabeth for inviting me to spill my guts in this series. Only a wonderful, hilarious, talented blog friend like Elizabeth could get me to do this…so here goes, my confession:
I love crafting but I cringe when I say that. If I could (and if my creativity would never run out) it would be crafting all day, every day. Glue guns, glitter, embroidery floss…I love it all. Turning raw materials into something else is the best feeling as far as I'm concerned. So, what’s weird about crafting, you wonder?
For many, crafting is a four-letter word. Crafting gets a bad rap and here’s the visual proof why:
I was at Joann Fabrics recently and snapped this picture of a huge display of these craptastic fleece no-sew blankets (read: a crapload of craptastic crap). When I took the pic I was kind of embarrassed, wondering if anyone was thinking, “She must be taking a photo because she loves them so much.” God, no.
“Crafts” like these give a bad name to the really brilliant handiwork out there. Let me show you what I mean:
Good crafts are out there! I don’t want to be embarrassed to use the word craft or to call myself a crafter anymore. So, look out world, I love to craft and I’m not ashamed to admit it!
Thanks, Elizabeth and LBD readers for having me today!
I promise Ashley, I won't think of craft as a four letter word any longer (even though it is five words). What say you? Do you all craft?
New video surfaces showing Tamil Tiger rebel Lt. Colonel Issei Piriya captured by Sri Lankan soldiers and then what appeared her execution after being sexually assaulted.
By H. Nelson Goodson
November 1, 2013
Sri Lanka - Last Sunday, a video and photographs showing Tamil Tiger Lieutenant Colonel Isseia Piriya, 27, aka, "Aipriya or Shoba" being captured alive at the "No Fire Zone" by Sri Lankan government soldiers at the end of the civil war indicates that she was not killed on May 18, 2009 during combat with the 53rd government military Division as the Sri Lankan government had listed and attempted to hide her execution. Major General Kamal Gunarathne was in charged of the 53rd Division in 2009.
The new video released on Sunday was exposed by Channel 4 News UK, which shows her live capture by Sri Lankan government troops and included the 2010 release of images of her body, which were identified by a friend and family members. Her body was included in field with others killed. New evidence exposed by Channel 4 shows she was killed at another location and then her body placed with other bodies in a field. The new video shows that she was captured alive and then a 30 second footage shows her body lying in a ditch with hands bound behind her back and a close up of her that shows she was sexually assaulted and executed afterwards. The footage also included government troops executing suspected Tamil rebels who were stripped naked, bound and cold bloodily executed. The video actually captured the faces of some of the executioners. The video and images of Lt Col. Aipriya were taken by a Sri Lankan government soldier, according to Channel 4, who didn't mention where they got the video.
Jonathan Miller, a Foreign Affairs Correspondent claims, that her sexual assault and execution indicates a war crime was committed and the Sri Lankan government had tried to cover up her murder. Her murder was most likely ordered by high ranking officials in the Sri Lankan government, according to the report. Her murder shows a systematic policy to execute Tamil Tiger soldiers while they were captured and bound as the civil war ended.
Lt. Col. Aipriya was known to carry a camera, paper and pencil instead of a weapon. Her health prevented her from the battlefield and was assigned to a propaganda unit. She became the Tamil propaganda star artist, actor, singer and TV host for videos promoting and glorifying suicide bombings.
The new video is drawing controversy and protests against the Sri Lankan government.
In less than two weeks, one third of world government leaders from 52 nations will meet in Colombo for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHGM) in Sri Lanka. The Tamil Nadu Assembly recently passed a resolution urging India to boycott the November 15, CHGM meeting summit and accused the Sri Lankan government of human rights violations and war crimes committed during the end of the civil war. Also, the Tamil National Alliance party, who won the election in the northern province of Sri Lanka has confirmed they will boycott the CHGM meeting.
Lt. Col. Asipriya appears to have been tortured, raped and executed by Sri Lankan government forces on May 18, 2009 at 3:17 p.m. at another area and then her moved to where other Tamil suspected sympathizers the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) or Tamil Tigers were executed as well while bound and tortured.
In February, several photos were released by the Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka providing clear evidence that Balachandran Prabhakaran, 12, had been executed by government troops on May 19, 2009, the last day of the nearly three decade war with Tamil Tiger rebels. Government officials had claimed in 2009 that the teen had been killed in cross fire in the battle field. He was the son of Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder and leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam who was reportedly killed in battle on the same day. Callum Macrae, the British director of the Channel 4 documentary, "No fire zone: The killing fields of Sri Lanka" wrote in an article in the Hindu, an Indian daily newspaper, that the photos show Balachandran was not killed in crossfire or in the battle field as the government claims. "...His death was deliberate and calculated," Macrae wrote.
New video showing the live capture of Tamil Lt. Col. Assei Piriya at link: http://bit.ly/1hyCwdW
Detective Gomez Jr. police powers were suspended in August during an internal investigation and has now been charged with one felony count of misconduct in public office in connection with the physical abuse of a murder suspect.
By H. Nelson Goodson
October 31, 2013
Milwaukee, WI - On Thursday, Milwaukee Police Detective Rodolfo Gomez Jr., 46, was charged with one felony count of misconduct in public office, including excessive use authority. Gomez Jr. posted a $10,000 signature bond and if convicted, Gomez Jr. Is facing up to three and a half years in prison and $10,000 in fines. He is scheduled for a preliminary court hearing on November 12.
Gomez Jr. has been suspended with pay until the outcome of the case. He is accused of beating Deron Darnell Love on August 14, while handcuffed during an interrogation. Gomez Jr. was caught on video surveillance in the interrogation room punching Love in the upper body. Gomez Jr. was removed from the room by another officer who witnessed the beating. Gomez Jr. came back in with several Milwaukee County Sheriff deputies to move Love into another cell. Gomez Jr. is also seen grabbing Love's head and bringing it down to knee him, according to the criminal complaint.
The Milwaukee Police Department referred Gomez Jr. to the Milwaukee County District Attorney's office for prosecution after an internal investigation determined that Gomez Jr. violated department policy.
Love who was charged with two felony counts of homicide in the death of his 7-year-old son was taken to a hospital for treatment.
The suspect's attorney had requested a copy of the video from the Milwaukee Police Department and the Milwaukee County District Attorney's office, but his request was denied until the investigation was completed.
Raúl Andrade Tolentino today, at age 28 and Alma Chávez
Tolentino was extradited to the U.S. from Mexico to face a 2000 homicide in Chicago.
By H. Nelson Goodson
October 31, 2013
Chicago, Illinois - On Wednesday, murder suspect Raúl Andrade Tolentino, 42, originally from Morelia, Mexico was extradited to the U.S. to face a homicide charge for the January 7, 2000 stabbing death of his former girlfriend Alma Chávez, 19, of Chicago. Tolentino was escorted by two FBI agents on a flight from Mexico and when he arrived on Wednesday night at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, he was taken into custody by Chicago authorities. He is scheduled for a bond hearing on Thursday.
In 2000, Tolentino went to the Chávez home on Pilsen and fatally stabbed her multiple times. He then stabbed himself to conceal his crime. Police arrested Tolentino after confessing to killing Chávez. Family members posted a $20,000 bond and a month later Tolentino skipped a court appearance and fled to California where his mother lived. The FBI in California went to the mother's address, but found that both Tolentino and his mother had returned to Mexico.
Years went by and Tolentino could not be located in Mexico. Benifacio Chávez, Alma's father travelled multiple times to Mexico and in 2006, he was able to get reliable information that Tolentino had been living in Michoacan. Authorities couldn't locate him and the case went cold again.
The U.S. Department of Justice had issued a warrant for Tolentino for flight to avoid prosecution. He was featured in America's Most Wanted in 2012.
In 2008, the U.S. requested for the Mexican government to issue an arrest warrant for Tolentino.
The Chavezes later learned that Tolentino had moved to his hometown in Morelia, Michoacan where he was working at a local pizza parlor. Alma's father later died and the case went cold once again.
In 2011, two Chicago Tribune reporters and a photographer went to Michoacan to follow up on information gathered from Alma's father. They discovered that Tolentino had registered to vote in Michoacan and had also registered a truck with the state. With the latest information by the reporters, authorities in Michoacan began to search for Tolentino until last February, when he turned himself in to authorities.
Tolentino had been held in a federal prison in Hermosillo, Sonora awaiting extradition, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Tolentino knew authorities in Mexico were hot on his trail, but he moved from house to house, used assumed names and worked in odd jobs to elude police, according to authorities in Mexico.
I just read this again today in my email...BUT its not true go figure.
Check www.snopes.com before getting tricked into sending out lies in email.
Claim: Item criticizes various aspects of the Social Security security system.
Example:[Collected via e-mail, March 2012]
SOCIAL SECURITY NOW CALLED 'FEDERAL BENEFIT PAYMENT'/ENTITLEMENT
Have you noticed, your Social Security check is now referred to as a "federal benefit payment"?
I'll be part of the one percent, to forward this, our government gets away with way too much in all areas of our lives, while they live lavishly on their grossly overpaid incomes! KEEP passing THIS AROUND UNTIL EVERY ONE HAS READ IT.....
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT THE ONLY THING WRONG WITH THIS CALCULATION IS THEY FORGOT TO FIGURE IN THE PEOPLE WHO DIED BEFORE THEY COLLECTED THEIR SOCIAL SECURITY!!!! WHERE DID THAT MONEY GO?????????????
This was sent to me, I am forwarding it because it does touch a nerve in me.
This is another example of what Rick Perry called "TREASON in high places"!!! Get angry and pass this on!
Remember, not only did you contribute to Social Security but your employer did too. It totaled 15% of your income before taxes. If you averaged only $30K over your working life, that's close to $220,500.
If you calculate the future value of $4,500 per year (yours & your employer's contribution) at a simple 5% (less than what the government pays on the money that it borrows), after 49 years of working you'd have $892,919.98.
If you took out only 3% per year, you'd receive $26,787.60 per year and it would last better than 30 years (until you're 95 if you retire at age 65)and that's with no interest paid on that final amount on deposit! If you bought an annuity and it paid 4% per year, you'd have a lifetime income of $2,976.40 per month.
The folks in Washington have pulled off a bigger Ponzi scheme than Bernie Madhoff ever had.
Entitlement my butt, I paid cash for my social security insurance!!!! Just because they borrowed the money, doesn't make my benefits some kind of charity or handout!!
Congressional benefits — free healthcare, outrageous retirement packages, 67 paid holidays, three weeks paid vacation, unlimited paid sick days, now that's welfare, and they have the nerve to call my social security retirement entitlements?
We're "broke" and can't help our own Seniors, Veterans, Orphans, Homeless.
In the last months we have provided aid to Haiti, Chile, and Turkey . And now Pakistan ......home of bin Laden. Literally, BILLIONS of DOLLARS!!!
Our retired seniors living on a 'fixed income' receive no aid nor do they get any breaks while our government and religious organizations pour Hundreds of Billions of $$$$$$'s and Tons of Food to Foreign Countries!
They call Social Security and Medicare an entitlement even though most of us have been paying for it all our working lives and now when it's time for us to collect, the government is running out of money. Why did the government borrow from it in the first place? Imagine if the *GOVERNMENT* gave 'US' the same support they give to other countries.
Sad isn't it?
99% of people won't have the guts to forward this.
I'm one of the 1% — I Just Did.
Origins: It's true that Social Security retirement payments are classified as "federal benefit payments," but that's about the only bit of information the author of this item got right — and even at that he errs in mistakenly assuming this terminology to be new and in misconstruing what it means.
The word "benefits" has been applied to Social Security retirement payments since the Social Security program was enacted in the 1930s. The terminology is also not unique to Social Security, as the phrase "federal benefit payments" applies to a broad class of payments made to (or on behalf of) individuals under federal government programs — everything from Social Security Disability Insurance to Medicare to
farm subsidies are considered "federal benefit payments." The fact that workers themselves contribute much of the money that goes into the Social Security retirement fund doesn't affect its classification as a benefit.
Likewise, the word "entitlement" has long been the standard terminology for payments made under government programs that guarantee and provide benefits to particular groups. Persons who have demonstrated their eligibility to claim such payments are entitled (i.e., "qualified for by right according to law") to receive them. The usage has nothing to do with pejorative connotations associated with the word (e.g., "a sense of entitlement") which are often applied to denote people expecting or demanding something they do not merit.
As for the calculations about savings detailed in the latter half of the above-quoted example, they're far off the mark for a number of reasons:
Assuming the aggregate Social Security contributions for any individual to be equal to 15% of his lifetime income is a flawed approach, because the required levels of Social Security contributions have varied across time, and Social Security contributions from individuals and employers combined have never "totaled 15% of your income before taxes." The current contribution level is 12.4%, and historically the contribution rates have been significantly less. (Many people confuse Federal Insurance Contributions Act [FICA] payments, which are currently assessed at a 15.3% rate, with Social Security, but they are not the same thing. FICA payments include both Social Security and Medicare taxes.)
Assuming the Social Security contributions for any individual to be equal to a percentage of his average lifetime income is a flawed approach, because Social Security contributions have a yearly cap (i.e., contributors never pay more than a specified maximum amount, no matter how much money they make in a given year). A person who earned $80,000 in 2001 would have paid just as much into Social Security as a person who made $750,000 in 2001, so assuming that the Social Security contributions for each equalled 12.4% of their income that year would produce a grossly inflated figure in the latter case.
The dollar figures provided are a mish-mash that take neither past nor future conditions into account. It's wrong to assume that Social Security contributions equal "15% of your income before taxes" because (as already noted), Social Security contribution levels have varied across time, they have never been as high as 15%, and there's no guarantee of what they will be in the future. It's wrong to assume that a typical current retiree (i.e., someone who started his working life 40+ years ago) earned an average of $30,000 per year across his lifetime, as the median household income in the U.S. didn't even reach that level until 1993. And it's wrong to assume that a current wage earner could safely see a 5% return on his money if it weren't paid into Social Security, as the average interest rates for savings accounts and certificates of deposit have been well below that figure (typically under 1% or 2%) for several years now.
Additionally, the statement that "our retired seniors living on a 'fixed income' receive no aid nor do they get any breaks, while our government pours hundreds of billions of $$$$$$'s to foreign countries" reflects a common but grossly inaccurate perception of how the federal government spends taxpayer monies. In fact, the bulk of the federal budget (by far) goes towards providing for retirees and low-income households: 20% of the budget pays for Social Security, 21% pays for health insurance programs (Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP), and another 13% pays for financial safety net programs. By contrast, only about 1% of the federal budget is spent on foreign aid.
Finally, although the anonymous author of this piece uses the term "Social Security insurance," he doesn't seem to understand that's exactly what Social Security is. Social Security isn't a savings plan or an investment scheme; it's an Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program intended to ensure that Americans are guaranteed a minimum monthly payment in their non-working years. As with all insurance programs, some people will eventually receive less than they paid in, and others will receive more.
I'm totally romantically involved with the blush pink color. For me this is more of a Spring color but this year it appears to be a Fall sensation as well. To make this color more autumnal appropriate I paired with -burgundy- and I added this light coat.
Coat: vintage/ I also love this oneHere Sweater: NY&CO/ similarHereandHere Cuff bracelet: c/o COOEE/ Here Skirt: H&M (old)/ similar style Here Sunglasses: Chloe Shoes: c/o Sam Edelman/ Here Bag: 3.1 Phillip Lim/ Here
“The modern Tea Party doesn’t understand history, so it can’t be expected to appreciate irony. It is a mongrel movement, its leaders self-proclaimed, its agenda by turns unfathomable and incoherent, its philosophy grounded in vehemence. So how can it possibly be dangerous? Here, in no particular order, are my four Rs of the Tea Party,” writes someone named Mike Appleton, a guest blogger on a site hosted by law professor and legal analyst Jonathon Turley. First, it is racist, he states, and it is a religionist movement that is revisionist and repressive.
He is not alone in his disdain for the Tea Party. Florida 9th District Democrat Representative Alan Grayson compared the Tea Party’s popularity to that of the Ku Klux Klan, and used a burning cross to replace the T in “Tea” in an email he sent out last week.
New York Democrat Representative Charlie Rangel told the Daily Beast: “It is the same group we faced in the South with those white crackers and the dogs and the police."
West Virginia Democrat Senator Jay Rockefeller said a while back that they are "People who will do absolutely extraordinarily bad things that are extraordinarily bad for the country and not care about it." He added he believes some members of the Tea Party are "extremists" who have "hijacked" the Republican Party.
Many Republicans also sharply criticized the Tea Party faction’s behavior, including the party leadership in both the House and the Senate.
The Tea Party has been blamed for the government shut down earlier this month, and during and after Congressional wrangling over raising the debt limit to prevent the shut down, the Republicans and Tea Party were called “arsonists,” “terrorists,” “extremists” and “anarchists,” accused of “waging a War on Women,” compared to Thelma and Louise, and have been blamed for healthcare.gov’s failed rollout, as well as for Standard & Poor's downgrading the U.S. credit rating from AAA to AA+ for the first time, and the non-existent recovery from the 2008 recession.
Such power. No wonder most Democrats and establishment Republicans fear the Tea Party.
However, after months of digging into documents in the National Archives and elsewhere a research firm has discovered that the Tea Party was also responsible for the 9-11 terrorist attacks, Fast and Furious, the Benghazi terrorist attack, as well as Eve’s temptation of Adam, the Edsel, the Black Sox scandal, New Coke, and choosing the name of the Washington Redskins, although there is a strong argument that most of these things were really Bush’s fault.
It won’t come as a shock to all those blaming the Tea Party for destroying the country that there is no such thing as “the Tea Party,” per se.
Several organizations use the words “Tea Party” in their name, but “Tea Party” signifies a movement, not a formal organization. It is a loose affiliation of national and local groups that independently set their own agendas, based upon a broad set of principles.
The original form of the name was TEA Party, for “Taxed Enough Already” Party, obviously opposing existing high taxation and proposed new taxes and higher rates on existing ones.
The broad goals of the movement are to advance the principles of limited federal government, individual freedoms, personal responsibility, free markets, and returning political power to the states and the people.
Radical stuff, that.
These are essentially the same principles sought by the Framers of the U.S. Constitution 220-odd years ago. It says more about the Tea Party critics than about the Tea Party movement itself that the critics attack the founding principles as extreme.
The Republicans/Tea Partiers who opposed Obamacare and tried to repeal or defund or delay it earned themselves the enmity of Democrats because it interfered with their strong desire to control the healthcare of every American, and also of establishment Republicans because the political price of what they did was thought to be very high for Republicans.
There may be a high political price to be paid, but that remains to be seen. However, the Tea Partiers weren’t playing politics – and in Washington, DC not playing politics may be the worst sin of all. They were standing for a principle: that Obamacare, which cedes control of 18 percent of the economy to government, is bad for the country from its dishonorable smoky backroom origins, to its passage with only Democrat support, to the idiotic “that depends on what the meaning of ‘is’ is” acrobatics of Chief Justice John Roberts to find it constitutional.
With only control of the House of Representatives, the Tea Partiers had no chance at repealing Obamacare and their efforts earned them great anger, though now delay seems the smart thing to do. But the decision to try to repeal, or defund, or delay was a decision based on a principle, whereas the decision not to try is a political decision.
If elected officials make a mistake, wouldn’t we rather they did so supporting a founding principle than considering political repercussions?
And what does it say about our country when taking a stand for one of America’s fundamental principles is considered radical or extreme?
Under the Republican plan, by contrast, people losing employer insurance would end up in the dysfunctional, non-reformed individual market—the one full of confusing, junk policies that might not cover basic services like maternity or mental health or have huge gaps in coverage. And the people losing Medicaid? They would end up with … nothing at all. The real issue here isn’t simply Republican opportunism and hypocrisy—although, please, let’s not ignore that either. The real issue is about the true trade-offs of policy. Both sides offer them. With Obamacare, a small number of people lose their current insurance but they end up with alternative, typically stronger coverage. Under the plans Republicans have endorsed, a larger number of people would lose their current insurance, as people migrated to a more volatile and less secure marketplace. Under Obamacare, the number of Americans without health insurance at all will come down, eventually by 30 or 40 million. Under most of the Republican plans, the number of Americans without insurance would rise. Source
Arcos Alvarez lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a building killing him and sending a woman to the hospital.
By H. Nelson Goodson
October 30, 2013
Milwaukee, WI - Last Saturday, Diego Isidro Arcos Alvarez, 23, was reported killed around 2:40 a.m. after losing control of his vehicle going eastbound, then crashed into La Carniceria Campesino southeast corner building and ruptured a gas line at the 600 block of W. Greenfield Ave., according to police. Firefighters had to open a door to the store to check for gas leaks inside.
Later someone broke into the store through the same door and stole a cash register. In another break in afterwards, someone attempted to take a safe from the same store, but failed, according to police. Police recovered video from Arcos Alvarez losing control of the vehicle from video surveillance cameras at the scene.
Police also have a suspect or suspects on video going into the store and an arrest is forthcoming.
Arcos Alvarez's passenger, a woman survived and was taken to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa.
Arcos Alvarez is originally from Maguellito, in the state of Veracruz and his body will be sent to Mexico once funds are collected to pay for the cost of transporting the body. Friends and family members placed donation boxes for Arcos Alvarez throughout local southside stores and at El Campesino store with a number to call for more information.
Arcos Alvarez's wake and remembrance began on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. at the Church and Chapel Funeral Home at the 1800 of W. Becher St. Arcos Alvarez body is expected to be transported to Mexico by Saturday, according to Magdaleno Alvarez Olmedo, Diego's uncle. Olmedo said, Diego had lived in Milwaukee for 8 years and is survived by friends and relatives in Milwaukee and Veracruz.
On Saturday in an unrelated accident, a homeless man known as Anthony "Tony" J. Judd, 45, was fatally hit by a westbound vehicle at the 900 block of W. Greenfield Ave. around 7:30 p.m., according to Ricco Lopez, a Block Watch Captain on S. 10th St. Tony was crossing from North to South on Greenfield Ave. when he was struck by the vehicle. The driver of the vehicle involved didn't stop after striking Tony, Lopez said.
Tony was known by many local residents as a man who would say hello and a punch line of "Hey amigo, do you have 25 cents."
Tony, the Milwaukee homeless man seen just south of W. National Ave. on S. Cesar E. Chavez Dr. or S. 16th St., last August 21 after he just sat down and fell asleep as hundreds of vehicles passed and ignored him.
One. Week. Left. I only have one week left to get everything finished before the big One Room Challenge reveal next Wednesday. (catch up on weeks 1 - 4 here)
I'll keep it real people, my progress from last week has been almost non-existent slow and I am burning the candle at both ends to get this, as well as some other big projects, done on time. So I'll keep this short and sweet.
I thought I'd share a few sneak peeks to hold you over while I work on final touches. With seven days to go, here is what I have left to cross off the list. (plus a few dozen non-list items)
- Rip up gross carpet (floor and stairs) and replace flooring - Paint and plank walls and bookshelves - Recover estate sale chairs - at the upholsterers - Create some sort of art station for the girls - Paint chairs and table - Repair and paint coffee table - Create toy storage that doesn't involve the words 'pink' or 'plastic' - Get some art on those walls - Find rugs - New Lighting
Be sure to check out how everyone else is wrapping up:
Pérez was deported to Mexico City on Tuesday morning while twelve were released just after 7:00 p.m.
By H. Nelson Goodson
October 30, 2013
El Paso, Texas - On Tuesday, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) removed Rocio Hernández Pérez, 23, from the U.S. She was flown to Mexico City in the morning and released. Pérez is originally from Veracruz.
She was taken into custody by ICE on September 30 at the Laredo, Texas border crossing and ICE checkpoint. Pérez was among 34 undocumented immigrants who decided to voluntarily return to Mexico and then attempt to reenter the U.S. and ask for asylum. Their attempt to reenter the U.S. failed and they were transferred to an El Paso ICE processing detention center for deportation proceedings. Nine were later released by ICE. Only 25 of the DREAM 30 filed for asylum under "credible fear" including Pérez who was brought to the U.S. when she was four and lived in North Carolina. ICE denied her asylum claim and was ordered by an immigration judge to be removed. ICE would not release any information why Pérez was denied asylum.
So far, ICE has approved 17 of the DREAM 30 members and seven have been denied asylum including Pérez. The rest of the DREAM 30 group are waiting the same fate, the 13 left in detention continued with their hunger strike. ICE attempted to order doctors at the facility to force feed them, but doctors have refused ICE's request, according to family members.
Pérez and the rest of the group were protesting the broken national immigration system and were demanding immigration reform.
The following twelve members of the DREAM 30 were released just after 7:00 p.m.on Tuesday. They were identified as Raul Juarez of New York; Edna Flores of Arizona; Israel Rodriguez of North Carolina; Giselle Gomez of South Carolina; Jesus Gutierrez of Pennsylvania; Marco Pacheco of Texas; Leonardo Contreras of New York; Pablo Vivas of California; Lorena Vargas of Arizona, Marcela Espinoza of Illinois; Sandra Paloma of California and Vidal Francisco of Arizona.
Also Erika Isaura Guzman Mata was facing deportation after she was denied asylum as Pérez, but an immigration judge overturned that decision and is awaiting her release.
McDowell no longer featured in the EQUINOX Body and Soul Boutique website as a License Massage Therapist. He was charged with first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse.
By H. Nelson Goodson
October 29, 2013
Kenosha, WI - On Tuesday, Matthew McDowell's photo and brief statement of his work has been removed from the EQUINOX Body and Soul Boutique website where he worked. McDowell, 40, of Kenosha was featured in the EQUINOX website as a License Massage Therapist. McDowell was charged on Tuesday with one count for first-degree intentional homicide, one count for hiding a corpse and a $350,000 bail was set. He is scheduled to appear at a Kenosha County court on November 5 for further proceedings. He was arrested on Sunday after turning himself to Kenosha police and confessing that he accidentally killed Erin Ziemendorf, 30, of West Allis. Ziemendorf's body was discovered on Sunday at 6:25 p.m. by Chicago police near a Greyhound station at the 500 block of South Jefferson St. Her body was found inside the trunk of her Silver 2004 Grand Prix with Wisconsin license plates in a public parking lot.
McDowell told police that he got into a heated argument with Ziemendorf and he accidentally killed her. He then drove her vehicle to Chicago with the victim's body in the trunk. McDowell left Ziemendorf's auto near a Greyhound station and then took a train back to Kenosha where he decided to turn himself to police.
The Cook County medical examiner's office ruled Ziemendorf's death a homicide by blunt-force trauma to her neck from an assault.
Let us pray that the wages of production and nonsupervisory manufacturing workers will finally be able to keep up with the price of lettuce over the long-term.
Click to enlarge.
Let us also pray that the remaining 12 million manufacturing employees (down from nearly 20 million in the late 1970s) will not soon be replaced by even more automated systems and outsourcing.
And lastly, let us pray that SNAP benefits will be cut for all participants in November 2013. May this new era of American manufacturing employment provide all that we could possibly ever want or need and may we remain recession-free well into the distant future.
DES MOINES, Iowa — As an audience of 600 Republicans awaited the arrival of Sen. Ted Cruz Friday night at the Iowa Events Center, conservative Christian activist Steve Scheffler came to the podium to give thanks to God for the Tea Party savior — and plead for more principled conservative leaders like him willing to “be crucified for their belief system.”
The ballroom full of amens that followed went a long way toward explaining why Cruz — fresh off a failed crusade to dismantle Obamacare that resulted in a 16-day government shutdown and a political disaster for his party — has been greeted with such adoration by Tea Party crowds in recent days.
