postheadericon OUR COUNTRY DOES NOT TAKE CARE OF ITS OWN—Two hundred and fifty million given to Egypt!!!

Two hundred and fifty million dollars to Egypt!!  Criminal!

Medicaid and social services are being cut: pre kindergarten will suffer, the elderly will suffer, the poorest of our citizens will suffer,  our educational systems will continue to fail our children and there doesn’t seem to be a damn thing we can do about it while our “beloved” government gives $250,000,000 to Egypt.  We are still giving loads of money to Iraq and every other country with its hand out.  BUT WE DO NOT TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN.  Unless we, the too silent majority, rise up and says “the line from the movie Network “I’m mad as hell and won’t take it anymore” we will continue to get the same.  The answer is to vote the corrupt, greedy, immoral, and often criminal politicians out. The answer is not to be persuaded by biased and slanted media coverage giving us skewed wrong information instead of the truth.  We should be given the facts straight without reporters editorializing while they report.  Report the news accurately and without bias, then give opinions. Republican or Democrat, our politicians are busy making the best deals for themselves with no regard to those who most stupidly hired them into office.  Let us stop making deals to give our money away to foreign dictators, countries, government and help our citizens right here at home.  Pray for our government to make moral, wise, right decisions to benefit US. Pray for our country.  Meredith

postheadericon Health and Health Care: Musings

Health and Health Care:  My blogging has slowed way down for a variety of reasons: 2012 was a rough year for me health wise due to back surgery, the arrival of a heart condition now under control, and a major bout of diverticulitis.  Last spring I was put in the position of a needing to offer a place to stay to a young man from the dog show world who had nowhere else to go. So he came into my home to help with the yard work and the dogs. He was good with the dogs and not so good working in other areas, but I grew to love him and wanted so to help him, but unbeknownst to me he was an addict and the ten months of trying to “save” him created so much stress that my heart decided to begin to throw out major extra premature ventricle contractions. I finally had to put my young friend out and as no one else would take him in, he landed in a homeless shelter and then jail. He was born heroin addicted and has major organic reasoning problems though very bright.  I have done all that I could to work the system to get him help and he is finally getting the help he needs in a major rehab center if only he will put forth the effort to get his act together. The sad thing is that those with mental illness leave jail or rehabilitation facilities with nowhere to go for continued help.  Years ago, our state mental hospitals were closed and those patients who were mentally were released with no plan for their future.  As am officer of the court told me this summer when I was trying to get my young friend psychologically y tested while he was in jail: there is really nothing out there for the mentally ill.  When the I realized and realize that he can never come back to live in my home because all my efforts to help him really only enabled him, but do so much want him to have salvation here in this world and more than that, salvation in the next world that I thought I could reach him.  

I have learned so much about addiction.  I did a lot of reading about addiction that helped me so much in the months of living a nightmare of trying to get him to meetings, getting him tested, getting him in to rehab which did not help him at that point, and trying to help him center himself on God. The most helpful book I have read on addiction is A Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff; this book is harrowing in its depiction of a lovely young man’s sinking into meth addiction.  My young friend’s problems were pain pills and alcohol and while meth is much more damaging in so many ways, no addiction is without pain. 

My heart itself is great, but its electrical system sucks causing a pacemaker to be inserted in April of 2011 because my pulse was lurking in the fifties. That coupled with the PVC problem that showed this July really took a toll after my back surgery in June and then two bouts of diverticulitis, one of them putting me in the ER in Seattle after I judged there in September and the other putting the hospital for five days before Christmas.  I was always an advocate for my late husband in the health care system; I knew that I had to be no less an advocate for myself.  It is sometimes too easy for the health care system to dismiss health complaints so I find myself always geared for battle when I have a health problem; most often my attitude is not necessary but sometimes one has to go on the offensive to ensure that one is taken seriously.  I am so grateful that I have excellent health care thanks to a life time working in Ohio’s public education, but I am seeing more and more that far too many others are not as fortunate. 

I judged in China in December, more about that later in its own category, and hobbled back with my left foot three times its size.  Cortisone shots no longer helped my poor arthritic foot so I had fusion surgery on February 13 and will not be able to put any weight on my foot for eight weeks—a looong, looong time.  I am in a skilled nursing facility so I can get the physical therapy I need to walk well again.  After the foot surgery, I immediately went into my first skilled nursing facility which was not very good despite the show and dance I got when looking at it as a possibility.  Not very good at all as I cannot say a good word about it! The day after I entered I got another bout of diverticulitis; I asked for a squad and was taken to the hospital where I spent five days post op for my foot and on antibiotic drips for my gut.  In the short time that I was there, I was really worried in the first skilled nursing facility, really worried and a bit afraid of the conditions.  I am now in a wonderful facility, close to home, really well staffed with caring professionals unlike the previous facility.  Why am I going into all this?  Because my eyes are really open to how well my health care plan provides and how fortunate I am and how unfortunate so many others are especially older people with very limited resources on Medicare and without family to act as advocates for them as I can act for myself and as I acted for my husband.  I was a bit fearful in the first facility where I was admitted because I felt no warmth or caring from the staff.  I asked an aide for a cup of cocoa and was refused not because I was not allowed to have it, but because he did not wish to get it for me.  There were real staff language barriers which I could overcome because I can communicate usually, but what of others who cannot communicate and express their needs or even have their needs noted.  Nothing must be scarier to an older person than to feel alone without resources, kindness, and without family to advocate for their needs.  Now with all the federal cuts being discussed, the cuts will hit the poor, the elderly, and children.  What a crock that our country does not take care of those who need care the most.  That first nursing facility opened my eyes personally.  The facility where I will be residing for the next few weeks is Country View Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center north of Sunbury, Ohio, and it is a caring, well-staffed, professional, and very pleasant place to be.  I am so happy to see the level of care that the longtime residents enjoy; believe me there are too many rest homes where the residents are just stockpiled without their humanity really appreciated or considered.

postheadericon The Arrogance of Authority—Our Government at Work

It is amazing to me how a little authority of certain officials, usually those who take themselves too seriously,

can lead to power trips, bullying tactics, abuse of authority, and lack of respect toward the citizens who put them in office

in the first place. It seems as if our politicians’ lack of respect for “we the people” has grown in proportion to their lack of respect

for what our country has always stood and for the Constitution under which they serve. M

The Arrogance of Authority
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A DEA officer stopped at a ranch in Texas , and talked with an old rancher.

He told the rancher, "I need to inspect your ranch for illegally grown drugs."

The rancher said, "Okay , but don’t go in that field over there…..", as he pointed out the location.

The DEA officer verbally exploded saying, " Mister, I have the authority of the Federal Government with me !"

Reaching into his rear pants pocket, he removed his badge and proudly displayed it to the rancher.

"See this badge?!  This badge means I am allowed to go wherever I wish…. On any land !!

No questions asked or answers given!!  Have I made myself clear……do you understand ?!!"

The rancher nodded politely, apologized, and went about his chores.

A short time later, the old rancher heard loud screams, looked up, and saw the DEA officer running

for his life, being chased by the rancher’s big Santa Gertrudis bull……
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With every step the bull was gaining ground on the officer,

and it seemed likely that he’d sure enough get gored before he reached safety. 

The officer was clearly terrified. The rancher threw down his tools, ran to the fence and yelled at the top of his lungs…..

          ( just love this part….)

"Your badge, show him your BADGE…….. ! !"

postheadericon A medical alert…must read!

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postheadericon South Carolina Primary

You go, Newt!  He gave a dynamite speech at the debate and another one tonight.  Without Romney’s big bucks and Super Pac, Newt has a huge challenge.  He certainly has had a checkered past, but I believe in redemption.  While Romney certainly has the leadership and financial expertise, he just cannot seem to connect with the regular hard working or unemployed America.  It was interesting tonight at Newt’s speech that he brought up the Chinese-Canadian proposed pipeline partnership and the Arab-Chinese nuclear plans.  Where have we been?   We need to put American first and stop pussyfooting around with other countries trying not to offend them.  If you have not heard, Mr. Gingrich’s S. Carolina primary victory speech, listen to it.  We certainly cannot tolerate another four years of lack of leadership and too many cabinet Czars!  Romney has sound policies and is still to be considered; he just needs to “Bring It” to the country. 

postheadericon HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

 

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Despite our faltering economy; the idiocy of both parties of our elected Fat Cat Congressmen and women; the seeming inability of our President to Presidentially sit down with our Congressional Super Committee to hammer out a deal to keep us out of default; the weak Republican field for President and a Democratic President that seems to put his 2012 campaign above our country’s welfare; our crumbling infrastructure; our woefully inadequate educational system; our plan to mistakenly cut aid to those who most need it; our plan to reduce defense spending in this very dangerous world; our rising joblessness and homelessness, we still have much to be thankful for in this the most free and still powerful country in the world.  So let us be thankful for all of God’s blessings and the lessons he gives us in our journey on earth.  Let us truly thank Him and pray for our people, our servicemen, our country, and our families.  Let us give Him thanks and Praise for what we do have!  Happy Thanksgiving, Meredith

 

postheadericon REMEMBER SO WE WILL NOT LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN-THE HOLOCAUST

There recently was a death of a 98-year-old lady named Irena.
During WWII, Irena got permission to work in the Warsaw ghetto, as a Plumbing/Sewer specialist.

She had an ‘ulterior motive’.

She KNEW what the Nazis’ plans were for the Jews (being German).
Irena smuggled infants out in the bottom of the tool box she carried; and she carried in the back of her truck a burlap sack (for larger kids).
She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto.
The soldiers of course wanted nothing to do with the dog, and the barking covered the kids/infants’ noises.
During her time of doing this, she managed to smuggle out and save 2500 kids/infants.

 

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She was caught, and the Nazis broke both her legs, arms and beat her severely.
Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she smuggled out and kept them in a glass jar, buried under a tree in her back yard.

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After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived and reunited the family.
Most had been gassed. Those kids she helped got placed into foster family homes or adopted.
Last year Irena was up for the Nobel Peace Prize.*

She was not selected.

President Obama won one year before becoming President for his work as a community organizer for ACORN

and

Al Gore won also— for a slide show on Global Warming.

  63 years later
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In MEMORIAM – 63 YEARS LATER


Please read the little cartoon carefully, it’s powerful.


Then read the comments at the end.


I’m doing my small part by forwarding this message.


I hope you’ll consider doing the same.

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It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe ended.

Remember the  the six million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians and 1,900 Catholic priests who were

murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved and humiliated!

Now, more than ever, with Iraq , Iran , and others, claiming the HOLOCAUST to be ‘a myth’.

It’s imperative to make sure the world never forgets, because there are others who would like to do it again.

postheadericon MEMORIAL DAY

My father served in World War II; my husband served in the Navy; one brother served in the Army in Germany and one brother retired from the Army.  On this day let  us reflect on the sacrifice that our service men and women made and are still making for our freedom.  I am most deeply disturbed about how we treat our veterans and especially disabled veterans as well as widows and widowers of the Valiants who gave their lives for our freedom or came back with severe disabilities which most bear courageously with no self pity.  Look at the following video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbV3lf1HzQI&feature=player_detailpage

postheadericon WHEN A SOLDIER COMES HOME—PLEASE READ AND PASS ON

I was asked to keep this going – and will gladly do so

WHEN A SOLDIER COMES HOME
This email is being circulated around the world – please keep it going

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When a soldier comes home, he finds it hard….
..to listen to his son whine about being bored.  
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….to keep a straight face when people complain about potholes.  
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         to be tolerant of people who complain about the hassle of getting ready for work.  
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…to be understanding when a co-worker complains about a bad night’s sleep.  
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..to be silent when people pray to God for a new car.  
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….to control his panic when his wife tells him he needs to drive slower.  
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..to be compassionate when a businessman expresses a fear of flying.  
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….to keep from laughing when anxious parents say they’re afraid to  
send their kids off to summer camp.   
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….to keep from ridiculing someone who complains about hot weather.    
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….to control his frustration when a colleague gripes about his coffee being cold.  
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….to remain calm when his daughter complains about having to walk the dog.  
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…..to be civil to people who complain about their jobs.    
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…..to just walk away when someone says they only get two weeks of vacation a year.    
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….to be forgiving when someone says how hard it is to have a new baby in the house.
The only thing harder than being a Soldier…

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Is loving one.    
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I was asked to pass this on and I will gladly do so,
Will you???

postheadericon PASS THIS ON: OUR GOVERNMENT AT WORK

Charley Reese has been a journalist for 49 years.

545 PEOPLE — By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then
campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are
against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and
high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don’t propose a federal budget. The president does.

You and I don’t have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations.
The House of Representatives does.

You and I don’t write the tax code, Congress does.

You and I don’t set fiscal policy, Congress does.

You and I don’t control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court
justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly,
legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems
that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was
created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty
to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central
bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They
have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a
congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don’t care if
they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the
power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is
the legislator’s responsibility to determine how he votes.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what
they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of
party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount
of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood
up and criticized the President for creating deficits…. . The president
can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole
responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving
appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? Nancy Pelosi. She
is the leader of the majority party. She and fellow House members, not the
president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetoes it,
they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million can not replace545
people who stand convicted — by present facts — of incompetence and
irresponsibility. I can’t think of a single domestic problem that is not
traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth
that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must
follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it’s because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it’s because they want it in the red ..

If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ , it’s because they want them in IRAQ. If
they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not
available to the people, it’s because they want it that way.

There are no insoluble government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire
and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they
can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from
whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the
belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy,"
"inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an
oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power..

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their
bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees…

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

                What you do with this article now that you have read it is up to you!

WE PAY:

Sales Tax

School Tax

Liquor Tax

Luxury Tax

Excise Taxes

Property Tax

Cigarette Tax

Medicare Tax

Inventory Tax

Real Estate Tax

Well Permit Tax

Fuel Permit Tax

Inheritance Tax

Road Usage Tax

CDL license Tax

Dog License Tax

State Income Tax

Food License Tax

Vehicle Sales Tax

Gross Receipts Tax

Social Security Tax

Service Charge Tax

Fishing License Tax

Federal Income Tax

Building Permit Tax

IRS Interest Charges

Hunting License Tax

Marriage License Tax

Corporate Income Tax

Personal Property Tax

Accounts Receivable Tax

Recreational Vehicle Tax

Workers Compensation Tax

Watercraft Registration Tax

Telephone Usage Charge Tax

Telephone Federal Excise Tax

Telephone State and Local Tax

IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)

State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)

Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)

Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax

Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax

Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)

Utility Taxes Vehicle License Registration Tax

Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes

Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, & our nation was the most
prosperous in the world.We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest
middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What in the hell happened? Can you spell ‘politicians? ‘

I hope this goes around THE USA at least 100 times!!!

YOU can help it get there!!! Cross Post!

GO AHEAD – –

 BE AN AMERICAN!!!