This Is Not The Way To Start The New Year: FEAR

This was taken from the www.whitehouse.gov:

Executive Order — Medical Countermeasures Following a Biological Attack

ESTABLISHING FEDERAL CAPABILITY FOR THE TIMELY PROVISION OF
MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES FOLLOWING A BIOLOGICAL ATTACK

Basically, what he is saying is that following a biological (anthrax) attack the U.S. Postal Service is allowed to deliver medical countermeasures (antidote). Well, thank you Mr. President, that makes me feel all safe & confident that all the branches of the U.S. Government are doing their job (uh not!).

This Executive Order is released after a Nigerian man tries to blow up a plane last month, Newark Airport was on a Security Lockdown Sunday night and the masterminds of the 9/11 attack on America are facing a trial in New York.

So is the message we are getting for the new year to be afraid, be very afraid in 2010? Because when a President makes an announcement like that it kind of makes me believe it’s just a matter of time.

Mr. Obama didn’t anyone ever tell you that is not the way you show confidence in your government? The American people need you to do your job and do it right. You are focusing on all the wrong things and in the meantime we are sitting ducks for another terrorist attack.

Airport security measures have been tightened since Christmas Day, they never should have been lowered. The Nigerian man was on a terror watch list, so someone wasn’t doing their job letting him in the country to begin with. Now we are being told if we fly our lives will be disrupted further due to new screening measures, which please understand I am all for. However, as Americans are arriving early, subjected to more screenings and randoms checks, terrorists are still getting through.

This is why, two very simple reasons:

1) The people in charge of airport security are lazy. They don’t want to be bothered having to detain someone or go through all the procedures for people they know are of interest. Instead, they “randomly check” those who they know are not a threat. It’s fast and easy for them.

2) The people in charge of airport security are afraid of being portrayed as prejudice. If they stop someone to “randomly check” them because of their race, nationality or ethnicity they are yelled at and bullied into believing that it is racial profiling. That these people should not be picked out just because of their background.

Fix this problem and fix it fast. Also, Mr. President one more thing (for now) do something besides talk and spend money. All you have done since you took office is spend Billions and Trillions of dollars and we are no where near the end of this economic depression or any terrorist threat. Let’s make that your New Years Resolution!

Boys Kicked Out Of Ballpark For Not Standing During God Bless America

Three teenagers visiting Eagles Riverfront Stadium on June 29 claim they were kicked out of the park because they refused to stand during the song “God Bless America” and are now suing the minor league Newark Bears. Surprise! Surprise!

The three boys all from Millburn High School are identified as 17 year olds Bryce Gadye and Nilkumar Patel and Shaan Mohammad Khan, 16.

The lawsuit claims the boys were seated behind home plate when the song began playing. When the song ended, they say Bears president and co-owner Thomas Cetnar approached them yelling that no one sits during ‘God Bless America’ in his stadium. Also cursing for them to leave the stadium. Cetnar denies that ever happened and called their account of what happened a lie.

“I think what makes it so horrible is that they were publicly humiliated for exercising a right that was guaranteed to them by the United States Constitution,” Gadye’s father used as their reason for the lawsuit.

So let me get this straight you want to stand behind your rights given in the Constitution of The United States, but refuse to sing a song about those freedoms.

Here is just a portion of the song:
God bless America.
Land that I love.
Stand beside her and guide her,
Through the night with the light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home.

I don’t think it’s too much to ask that you stand for a song celebrating a country that gives you the liberties and rights you expect and for which America allows you. Why wouldn’t you?

According to Ross Gadye, he met with general manager Mark Skeels and co-owner James Wankmiller after the incident. He said they apologized and offered and free tickets. However, the boys said the apology needs to come from Cetnar who would not meet with them and was sued soon after.

Wankmiller said they offered to meet with the boys and never heard back from them and that it all comes down to money. Another surprise!

I hope they don’t get a penny and then sued for wasting taxpayers money, because any hardworking taxpayer would stand for that song and for the U.S.

Remembering Sept. 11th

We all remember September 11, 2001 as if it were yesterday.  Where we were, what we were doing, how we found out.  It is a memory, no matter how horrifying it was, it is one that will haunt us forever. That was a day Americans finally realized that we are not untouchable and there are evil people in this world whose sole purpose is to destroy us.

As we all watched the Towers collapse, the Pentagon wall crumble and a big crater in the ground where a plane crashed our hearts broke. They broke for all those innocent people who were killed that day, that’s right they didn’t just die they were killed, viciously and intentionally. They still break every time a birthday or anniversary passes and every year we realize this day was not a nightmare.

So today we remember all those that lost their lives that day eight years ago. We remember the people who simply went to work that morning, the ones who sat on a plane and all those who gave their lives trying to help others. We will never forget.

I want to remember my friend Deanna, who was pregnant with her first child Matthew. I will never forget.

To the disgusting, evil men who took her life and the lives of almost 3,000 people that day, may you rot in hell. America will never forget.

God Bless The USA!!!!

Health Care Reform: The Obama Plan

The Obama Plan.  It has been the focus of many debates and knee deep in controversy.  I have a pre-existing condition so this affects me greatly.  I say we break it down.

If you have Health Insurance:

• Ends discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. Those with pre-existing conditions are not denied health insurance.  Health Insurance companies are not allowed to deny anyone coverage if you can pay their premiums, they are however going to make it incredibly hard for you.  This was said to me personally by one of the biggest insurance companies.  Their representative said those words to me when I tried to obtain their coverage.  They will force you to pay high premiums while limiting your coverage and denying claims.  By them denying claims you are denied treatment.
• Limits premium discrimination based on gender and age. How?  If you can do that, do it now.
• Prevents insurance companies from dropping coverage when people are sick and need it most. It’s not that they drop your coverage, why would they if you are paying the premium.  They will keep taking your money and just deny your claims.
• Caps out-of pocket expenses so people don’t go broke when they get sick. Please see my thoughts below.
• Eliminates extra charges for preventive care like mammograms, flu shots and diabetes tests to improve health and save money. Please see my thoughts below.
• Protects Medicare for seniors. If this is truly a concern for them why did they just cut budgets for Medicare and stop making premium payments for seniors who cannot afford them?  They did not give prior notice, they just took the money out of Social Security checks.  The checks these people rely on to survive and pay for the medical costs Medicare does not cover.
• Eliminates the “donut-hole” gap in coverage for prescription drugs. Isn’t this why the created Medicare part D? The part D plan gives Medicare recipients who did not have prior prescription coverage the plan to cut the out-of-pocket costs for their monthly prescriptions.  Why not just expand the program?

If you don’t have Insurance:

• Creates a new insurance marketplace – the Exchange – that allows people without insurance and small businesses to compare plans and buy insurance at competitive prices. This does not guarantee Americans will be able to afford it.  If you have no job, which is the issue millions of Americans are facing you still cannot afford to pay any premium.  They can compare plans now and buy insurance with the one who offers the lowest premium.  However, they can’t afford the premium period, even the lowest isn’t low enough.
• Provides new tax credits to help people buy insurance. He speaks about tax credits on a sliding scale and cost- sharing for out-of-pockets expenses, but he doesn’t care to elaborate or explain what these are to the Americans who don’t know.  Cost-sharing is what they did to Medicaid, which made it impossible for some people with pre-existing conditions and life threatening disabilities to be covered under the program and excluded them from receiving health insurance.  Also, who exactly will be able to receive these tax credits?
• Provides small businesses tax credits and affordable options for covering employees. What about handing fines out to the employers who do not want to offer coverage or use the loop-hole and hire all part-time employees that they are not required to offer any benefits to.
• Offers a public health insurance option to provide the uninsured and those who can’t find affordable coverage with a real choice. He also said it will be like Medicaid.  Then he contradicted himself and said that this public option will operate like any private insurance company – it must be self-sufficient and rely on the premiums it collects. How if those on Medicaid cannot afford a premium?  If it will be like Medicaid why not just improve that program, instead of creating one just like it.  This public option is still on the table for one reason, no matter what he says it is geared toward those who already rely on public assistance.  If not, why not eliminate the option.  You are already supposed to be offering affordable coverage, so why does there have to be yet another option?
• Immediately offers new, low-cost coverage through a national “high risk” pool to protect people with pre-existing conditions from financial ruin until the new Exchange is created. Again I ask, how?  Who is going to provide this coverage and what will the limitations be?  Again, what if it’s not as affordable as you are leading people to believe?  You want us to accept what you say and wait for this new “Exchange” but we won’t receive it for another four years.
• Requires additional cuts if savings are not realized. Under the plan, if the savings promised at the time of enactment don’t materialize, the President will be required to put forth additional savings to ensure that the plan does not add to the deficit. He says this, but what if at the time savings are not realized he will do what he has been doing and say we will put forth additional savings but it will take time.  So he wants you to pass a bill that probably won’t even be realized during his Presidency and makes promises for future Presidents.
• Requires large employers to cover their employees and individuals who can afford it to buy insurance so everyone shares in the responsibility of reform. Under the President’s plan, large businesses – those with more than 50 workers – will be required to offer their workers coverage or pay a fee to help cover the cost of making coverage affordable in the exchange. This will ensure that workers in firms not offering coverage will have affordable coverage options for themselves and their families.  Individuals who can afford it will have a responsibility to purchase coverage – but there will be a “hardship exemption” for those who cannot. There it is at the very bottom, the exception to the everyone pays promise, the “hardship exemption.” What qualifies as a hardship?  If you have not or do not pay taxes then you should not be allowed to be an exemption.  People on Social Security Disability have paid taxes at one point in their life, this makes them eligible to receive Disability, that should be the only exemption.

America needs Health Care Reform, that is not under debate, however there is a way.  It’s just not Obama’s way.  Instead of finding ways to make it easier for patients to pay hospital bills why don’t you make the hospitals accountable for what they charge.  There should be only one bill, a single bill received from the hospital, for services rendered.

There should not be a bill for each service.  A patient should not receive a separate bill, one for the hospital stay, one for medication, one for lab tests and individual bills for each person who walks through their door.

That person should not be responsible to pay for each nurse and doctor who enters their room, that is why they get a paycheck.  They should not be responsible for doctors they did not approve of who come in to read their chart and listen to their heart for two minutes.

Congress wants to cut health care costs and make it affordable for everyone, then start there.   Stop allowing doctors and hospitals to take advantage of us.

Another way to cut costs, make insurance companies accountable. Instead of trying to pass a bill making separate programs improve the ones already in place.  Instead of allowing these companies to profit off of us fine them for every legitimate claim they deny.  Lower the costs of medical services and prescriptions, which you can by demanding these medical and prescription providers not be allowed to mark-up costs to the degree they do now.  There can be a compromise between making a profit and offering affordable options.  That’s what any Commission you create should be focusing on.

I don’t want to hear that is government interference, government interferes with everything else, why not let them interfere with what can benefit Americans.

There are many more ideas just like these, so why don’t we get them out in the open and then maybe, just maybe someone will listen.

Source: WhiteHouse.gov

AIG Just Keeps Giving Millions Away

Robert Benmosche, the new CEO of insurance giant AIG, is most likely going to get his $7 million bonus and $3.5 million incentive program. This is not sitting well with shareholders and government officials and I’m sure not going to be welcomed news to taxpayers.

AIG has received $180 billion in taxpayers money over the last year. The company was bailed out or it faced financial ruin, but it has no qualms about handing over millions to one person. If you didn’t believe it before you certainly know it now. The root of their downfall almost was and still may be: GREED.

It’s being reported that Kenneth Feinberg, nicknamed “pay czar,” who was appointed by the Obama administration to oversee the compensation of top executives at companies which have received federal bailout assistance will approve the AIG compensation deal.

Mr. Benmosche wants what the board offered him or he will leave. So let him! I’m positive that you can find an executive with just as much, if not more experience than greedy Benmosche. Someone who wants to see the taxpayers money put to good use and actually start to turn this economy and AIG around.

The Obama administration needs to finish what they started. They handed out all this money, now see it through. They should put in place reasonable compensation packages to all executives, current and future. By reasonable, I mean by taxpayers standards. If they don’t want them, they can leave.

It’s their greed that got us in trouble to begin with. Let them go. There are enough people out of work and/or retired to choose from that can and will do the job effectively.

Octo-Mom Needs 14 Slaps, One For Every Child

I can’t stand Nadya Suleman, you know Octo-Mom. I think she needs to seek help for a mental illness, that is the only explanation I can possibly give. She’s sick in the head.

Last night I caught a glimpse of the Octo-Mom special on TV. I was not planning on watching it, that is why I would not promote it, but caught it in a channel surf.

The two minutes I caught was a paparazzi following Nadya to her car asking her if when the kids are older she would do a reality show. Her answer was no because that would be exploiting her kids. Umm Hellloooo!!!! According to UsMagazine.com Suleman admits that her children received a six figure account as payment.

She recently told Us Weekly that she screwed up her life, her kids’ lives and it was a mistake having so many kids without a father figure. You think!

Suleman also berates Kate Gosselin, a fellow Octo-Mom, for being an attention seeker. I guess just because you’re on television and create a website asking for money that doesn’t mean you are seeking attention.

So because she was making money for the children’s future that makes it okay to exploit them. Yes Nadya, what you are doing is considered exploitation. Look it up, here I’ll even help you: exploitation.

Murderer Should Not Be Shown Compassion

Today the man convicted of killing 270 people in the 1988 explosion of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland was set free on compassionate grounds, allowing him to die at home in Libya from prostate cancer.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill claimed because Abdel Basset al-Megrahi’s condition has deteriorated he was bound by Scottish values to release him. That decision should not have been left up to him, every country that had citizens on that plane should have had a say.

Abdel Basset al-Megrahi was one of two men indicted in 1991. The other suspect was Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah. Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah, was found not guilty and freed.

Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, a former Libyan intelligence officer, was convicted on Janurary 31, 2001 for his part in the December 21, 1988 bombing of Flight 103. It took them 13 years to convict him and since his conviction in 2001 he has only served eight years of his life sentence.

So what if he is dying. So what if he wants to spend what little time he has left with his family in Libya. He should not be given the benefit of any compassion. He should not be shown any mercy since he showed no mercy to the 270 people who died as a result of that explosion. As of today no one is being punished for murdering all those people. Justice has failed.

White House Staff Salaries

The Annual Report to Congress on White House Staff – a report required by Congress listing titles and salaries of every White House Office employee.

OK I had this whole post I was going to type about how the President should be a little bit more sympathetic to all those who are unemployed and pay his employees wages similar to those they would be paid outside the White House.  I mean does he really need to pay $172,000 to 22 assistants?  Does he really need 22 assistants?

While it’s still true I don’t think anyone needs 22 assistants, I have thought about it and I would never want to work at the White House.  Although I am sure it is an an honor to some, those employees are over-worked and their personal lives undoubtedly suffer for it.

The jobs are demanding and stressful and I would never want to do them, but someone has to.  So you know what, if you have to follow the President around everywhere he goes and cater to his every whim, then you deserve $172,000 a year.

Is North Korea Looking For A War?

According to CNN and South Korea’s Defense Ministry, North Korea is at it again.  This time by testing three short-range missiles off its east coast Thursday.

U.S. Military Communications told CNN that North Korea had issued a warning to mariners similar to the one it issued in April, when it tested a long-range missile.

That April ‘military exercise’ was a nuclear test in May, which threatened U.S. and South Korean ships near its territorial waters.

North Korea is not listening to the warnings of Obama, no surprise.

If you ask me North Korea is looking for a war.  This is their strategy. They want to be able to blame big, bad America when it fires at North Korea when all they were trying to do was test their military weapons.

Read the Official Webpage of The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

They claim the Lee regime (Lee Myung-bak, President of South Korea)   is inventing a nuclear threat from North Korea.  That Lee is trying to ignite a war, they continually refer back to the Korean War and the part the United States played, or as they put it, it was America’s fault.

North Korea has fired nuclear missiles and is not stopping, tests or not. If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it’s a duck.

They state the nuclear test was a powerful sword, self-defense against the U.S. and it’s followers hostile policies against it, their way of defending the Korean Peninsula .

They state in no uncertain terms that the DPRK is building up their nuclear deterrent to respond to the US invasion with resolute punishment.

I think it’s important for everyone to understand how they think.  It’s really not all that different than those of a radical terrorist, always thinking we are trying to conquer the world.  If they pursue this vendetta and their progression of nuclear weapons will America be left with no choice?  Would it lead to WWIII, or what will undoubtedly be a Nuclear War?

I would really like opinions on this.

More Tax Hikes To Come

After reading an article on Wallet Pop about states raising taxes I am left disappointed in the people we voted for.  Their job is to look out for the best interest of their states and its residents.

It is obvious they understand that they are losing money usually gained from income taxes, because of the rising unemployment issue.  So what I don’t understand is why they would think it’s a good idea to charge those people who have no money coming in besides their unemployment benefits more money on everything?

NOTE TO ALL LAWMAKERS:  STOP TRYING TO MAKE MONEY OFF THE PEOPLE WHO DON’T HAVE IT.  FIND ANOTHER WAY.

Stop handing out raises and bonuses to already highly paid executives. Actually, make sure the people that get to keep their jobs deserve it.

I would like to know where all the tax money has been going.  What about all the money being made from bridge & tunnel tolls, traffic or parking tickets, all the parking meters and every lottery ticket (and don’t tell me it’s going towards education)?  Just to name a few.

Every single thing we purchase has a tax on it and every pay check we receive decrease as the months pass.  Sure Obama gave us an extra $13.00 a week in our pay, that should really put a dent in our household bills.

Come on America…..WAKE UP!!

Swedish Parents Won’t Reveal Child’s Gender

The Swedish parents of a 2 1/2 year old child are refusing to reveal the child’s sex.  They refer to the child only as “Pop” and only a very select few know Pop’s true gender.

The 24 year old parents feel that a gender is like putting a blue or pink stamp on the child’s forehead and do not want their child to be constrained by a specific mold that a gender would give.

Pop wears everything from pants to dresses, so there is no wardrobe indication of a sway towards one gender.

There are different opinions on whether or not the parents are doing the right thing.  I think that by not allowing your child to be who they are is not a way to teach them that no matter who you are, what sex, what race, you can do whatever you want.  I think that we as a society have proved that already.  What do you think?

Source:  The Local – Sweden’s News In English

High Court Rules In Favor Of White Firefighters

The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of white firefighters from New Haven, CT.   It reverses a decision Sonia Sotomayor endorsed when she was an appeals court judge and these men were unfairly denied promotions because of their race.

The claim was New Haven did away with a promotions exam because no African-Americans and only two Hispanic firefighters were likely to pass, which would give them the opportunity to be made lieutenants or captains based on the results. The city’s action was based on a fear they would be sued by the minorities.

Sotomayor, who is nominated to take Justice David Souter’s place in the Supreme Court, was one of the three judges who ruled in agreement with New Haven officials and the city acted properly in throwing out the promotions exams because it would give the minorities a disadvantage.

The city was afraid of being charged with violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which included the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. However,  the EEOA is  against discrimination of any kind for any race, so by choosing to eliminate an exam based on a racial decision, wouldn’t that violate the Act?   The white firefighters agree.

The outcome of the case could and should alter how employers make job-related decisions.  The point of these exams is exactly what should be, to determine the best person for the job based on their knowledge and experience.  If there are some who cannot pass the test then they should not be allowed a promotion when certain knowledge is required.

Mother Let Boy Reach 555 Lbs.

Jerri Gray from South Carolina is out of jail on $50,000.00 bond after being charged with neglecting her obese son.

Gray allowed her son Alexander Draper to reach 555 lbs. by the age of 14 and that’s when law enforcement finally stepped in.  Alexander’s mother claims she cannot afford to get her son treatment and blames a hectic work schedule on his weight gain.  She says she was forced to buy fast food in between shifts.

There are too many working, single mother’s out there for this excuse to fly.  If you need to work you make prior arrangements for your child, whether it be babysitters or food.  How could you let your son gain that much weight, nevermind not seek help?

Oscar Winner Used Craigslist To Rape Women

He is a famed songwriter and director, he even won an Oscar, but 71 year old Joseph Brooks has been indicted on charges of rape and sexual assault.

Nine out of 11 victims claim they responded to an ad posted on the free classifieds website Craigslist.  He allegedly used the site to post ads looking for women to cast in acting roles.

The Oscar he won for the 1977 Best Original Song  ’You Light Up My Life’ was used as bait to get them back to his apartment on the Upper East Side.  Two of the victims claim they were given date-rape drugs.

I guess Mr. Brooks thinks he’s back in the era of Hollywood where “casting couches” were used but never spoken about.

By the way Craigslist has been in the news a lot lately and not for good reasons.  It seems it’s being used as a new form of kidnapping, where you actually get your victims to come to you.

Madoff Says 12 Years Is Enough

When I think of someone who honestly believes they are too smart and too important I think of Bernard Madoff.  I honestly believe that he believed he would get off.  Then again I don’t think he ever thought he’d get caught.

Madoff’s lawyer told the judge who will sentence the con artist next week that 12 years in prison would be sufficient punishment.

This guy robbed people of their life savings leaving many in financial ruins.  Now he thinks he can tell the judge how much time he should serve.  He should get the max sentence allowable by law.

Terry Nichols Claims Prison Food Makes Him Sin

In federal jail for the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995, Terry Nichols asked for a court-appointed attorney to file a lawsuit complaining about the food in prison.

The lawsuit claims that the Supermax prison in Colorado is causing him to sin, apparently he feels he doesn’t get enough nutritious meals.

Nichols was given a life sentence for conspiring with Timothy McVeigh to blow up a federal building and involuntary manslaughter for the 168 people that were killed in the bombing.  Timothy McVeigh was convicted of murder and the world watched as he was executed.

Not only should he never have been allowed a lawyer to waste tax payers money and file such a frivolous lawsuit, but he should be happy he wasn’t executed and live the rest of his life quietly in prison.

What was the U.S. Attorney General thinking when this was allowed to go through?  It should have been denied with a big fat red stamp!

Media Whores That Don’t Deserve Our Attention

I don’t watch Reality TV.  Not interested, never was.  All it does is give people who are obsessed with themselves a place where they can try and get famous quick. 

They are sometimes called media whores and rightfully so.  They crave attention and will do whatever it takes to get it.  Anything that will put them in the headlines and keep them there. 

Let’s take a look at some of the most recent so-called headliners:

Jon & Kate + 8 – I will not say anything that bad, because children dominate that show and they are the real reason why people watch it.  However, if you were really focused on taking care of your children do you think a reality show is the way to go?  Just wondering.

Heidi & Spencer Pratt (Speidi) – They are the two most self-involved people I have ever seen.  They really think that people are interested in them.  Let’s see if I can get this straight, they faked a wedding, then he wanted to fake a divorce and then they got married for real?  All to steal the spotlight from Lauren Conrad on The Hills, which is a scripted reality show.  Uh Huh OK!

The Real Housewives (pick a county) – This is what people want to see women throwing tantrums, spending money like they’re princesses and well, acting like total bitches?  Where is the class they’re supposed to have?

I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Outta Here – Do these people really think they are that famous?

That is just to name a few.  I’m really just trying to make a point here, but I may write a part 2 to this post because I know I will have more to say. 

Thanks to Reality TV anyone can be a celebrity and that word doesn’t mean much anymore because of it.  It basically is used in regards to anyone using or in some cases trying to hold on to their 15 minutes of fame.  They really all need to get a life!

Who’s The Racist?

If you want to live in an equal society, or preach about one, where the color of your skin is no longer a factor, then stop bringing race into every unfortunate situation.

This goes for Al Sharpton and Mr. Charlie Rangel(D-NY) who can’t help but take cheap shots in reference to Obama’s NY visit and the accidental shooting of off-duty police officer, Omar Edwards, by another officer, Andrew Stanton.

Where were they when those poor high school students were shot execution style in NJ?  What, it’s not worth their time because it’s not white vs. black but black vs black?

Rangel commented to The NY Daily News about how Obama wouldn’t walk in Harlem unidentified and that no matter who you are, if you are of color you are in jeopardy while running for a bus in this community. 

That was hardly the case in the tragic shooting of Edwards and an uncalled for statement, all they are doing is adding fuel to an already burning fire.  They are not preaching unity, they are crying injustice and making a bad situation worse.

Edwards was off-duty in Harlem when he found someone trying to steal his car. He chased that person with his gun drawn.  Another officer, Andrew Dunton, came upon the scene, Edwards with gun in hand did not identify himself as a cop when told to drop his weapon and was shot when he failed to do so.

All Rangel and Sharpton are doing (and all Sharpton ever does) is create a world filled with hatred, so much so that it is also turning us into a society of reverse racism, where decisions are being based on race in the fear of being criticized or in some eyes trying to right a wrong.  If they really want to make this world a better place they would eliminate the color of our skin from situations and make decisions and come to conclusions based on the individual.

Taxes, Fare Hikes, Fines & Unfair Hearings – When Do We Win?

I have previously written about DMV tricks to get your money, but what I experienced today has proved once again in NY is that no one in this state is looking out for the best interests of the residents.

We all know that cops have been out and about in full force, handing out tickets like candy.  What some people don’t know is that they are doing it as down low as possible.  They are driving around in unmarked, old vans, checkered cars and black sedans, just to name a few.    

I received a ticket from an officer in an unmarked car last September.  His black sedan was  two cars behind me.  I answered my cell phone using the speaker function, the phone sat on my center console.  I was already pulled over when the cop pulled up behind me flashing his dashboard light.

He told me that because he pulled me over it is mandatory that he give me a ticket, which we all know is not true.  Just because a cop pulls you over does not mean they have to write you a ticket.  The cop told me to plead not guilty, see the judge and tell him it was an emergency.  He had already written the ticket there was no arguing.

I found out  the ticket was submitted 2 1/2 months later only because I happened to look online for the hell of it and due to no response my license was suspended.  I went to the DMV the next business day and was told I cannot reverse the suspension or see the judge unless I pay a suspension lift fee and a bond.  Those fees together were more than the actual ticket.  I refused and left.  In the end I had to write to Albany and have them overturn the decision and give me a fair hearing date.

That hearing was at 10:30 this morning and it was not fair at all.  It has taken me until now at 4:57 pm to write this because I wanted to be calm when I did.  Not only was the judge a half hour late, but I felt like the hearing was just a formality and no matter what I said he was going to find me guilty.  Especially, when the cop flat out lied, more than once and I called him on it.  The judge didn’t seem to care, even though the officer was under oath.

He claimed that I had the cell phone in my left hand, to my left ear.  First of all, as I stated above I had the phone on speaker on my center console which is on the right side of the drivers seat and even if I had been on the phone I am a righty.  It would have been in my right hand not my left. 

The officer also said that he was in pursuit of me, until he finally pulled me over in a safe location.  Really…hmm…Well, let’s go over this again, he was two cars behind me, so how could he even see if I was on a cell phone?  He didn’t pull me over I was already pulled over in a parking space and yes by that time you could visually see the cell phone.

The third lie was after he already said he saw the phone to my left ear and I had explained that it was on my center console on speaker, the cop claimed he told me even though it was on speaker that it was still illegal.  Uh..not if it wasn’t in my hands while I was driving it wasn’t and he had already said he saw it to my ear. 

So the judge asked him, did you see the phone close to her ear?  The officer said yes.  The judge said how close in proximity to the ear?  The officer said within 2-3 inches uh not true.  Now the judge had already heard him contradict himself, but that didn’t matter.  The officer also said that I was on the phone with my husband and it was not an emergency.  Convenient for him to say that now.

The judge didn’t seem to care that Albany agreed with me to the point that they overturned the original conviction.  It also didn’t matter that the call was an emergency and I explained why.  It didn’t matter that the cop lied or that his story didn’t make sense or that I pleaded a very convincing case.  He was going to find me guilty regardless and he did.  The best part is that the $40.00 fine comes with an $80.00 surcharge.  Imagine that, the surcharge is twice as much as the fine.

Unfortunately, I have to pay it or they will suspend my license again.  However, I will appeal it and I will continue to write about the unfair practices of NYC law enforcement.  New York lawmakers really should start looking out for us New Yorkers, because between traffic and parking tickets, raising tolls and fares and adding taxes to everything they can think of it’s getting really hard for people, especially those who lost their jobs, to make ends meet.

When are they going to realize this is not the way to make money.  The city has been hurting since September 11, 2001 and the economy has gotten worse.  Believe me we all understand that every state is in need of a bailout, but this is not the way to get it.  Ripping off your residents is not a way to boost the economy.  It’s only going to make everything worse.  Call AIG and get it from them.  They have gotten plenty from us.

A Change In The Priorities Of Government Funded Health Care Programs Is Needed

A change in the priorities of Medicaid and other government health care coverage is absolutely necessary. Eligibility should be based on medical necessity not income.

It is unfathomable that people in desperate need of health insurance are not receiving coverage.  In many of these cases their life depends on it.

The rules need to be changed.  Medicaid is automatically given to people who receive SSI, which is based on income or lack of.  However, those on SSD, which is based on disability do not get such consideration.  That is just plain backwards.

Major health care insurance companies, such as Aetna (just to name one but definitely not the only one), have waiting periods of up to 12 months for pre-existing conditions.  Which means they have to pay the high premiums for 12 months before they can actually use the coverage and even then insurance does not cover everything.

This needs to change and now.  There are too many people left out due to this loophole.  To think if Congress would put just some of the money they spend on their pet projects into the health care system and make the changes needed then the people who need coverage would receive it.  

They would receive the tests, operations and medicine they need to survive.  These are not options for many people, they are necessary for their survival and it’s unacceptable for them to not be receiving the coverage for all of these things.  Not in America!  Not when people come from other countries and receive it first.

The issue for health care coverage for people with pre-existing conditions and disabilities needs to be addressed.  It should take precedence over whether abortion should be allowed in Mexico, which was one of the first issues Obama confronted as President.  He even offered government funds for it.  Does he not think there are plenty of people here in America, the country he is supposed to be lookingout for need his help?

I would really like to read your thoughts on this subject.

 

A New “View” Debate Worth My Opinion

On the Tuesday, May 5, 2009 episode of the daytime talk show “The View” the ladies debated over the theories of creation.  It started with whether Darwinism or creationism should be taught in schools and ended with Joy basically telling Sherri that if she doesn’t teach her son Darwinism that it was child abuse, which had Elisabeth disagreeing and so do I.

As a Christian, Sherri follows the Bible and is teaching creationism to her four year old son, Jeffrey.    Elisabeth and Sherri were all for teaching creationism in schools, which includes Darwinism. ”If Darwinism is taught, just do it with respect,” Sherri stated.  She also stated that if Darwinism is taught, that she will teach him evolution is incorrect.

Creation is taught in school and in church.  You choose to believe what you want.  If you are a fairly religious person and believe that God created us, then that is your right.  Darwinism as an alternative explains creation based on the scientific theory of evolution. 

This led to Joy’s rant, “It’s not a religious fervor thing. There’s proof! Scientific proof! You want your children to go into the world and be ignorant? That’s child abuse in my opinion.” 

Elisabeth chimed in defending Sherri, basically telling Joy that evolution is your way and you can’t call it child abuse because someone doesn’t agree with your way. 

For Joy to accuse Sherri of child abuse if she doesn’t teach her son to believe Darwinism is unacceptable.  Joy can choose to believe what she wants, but should not impose those thoughts onto anyone else, even in the name of science. 

Kids will learn alternative theories about everything in school, that is what it is there for, to teach.  They will choose on their own what to believe on every subject.  That is their right, just as it is Sherri’s right to teach her son to believe that God created man.  It seems to me that Joy has taken the place as “dictator” of the show.  I guess someone had to do it.

The BIG difference between President Bush & Former President Clinton.

While reading some news articles on the web and the comment threads, one of them stood out to me.  It explained, when asked how, President George Bush kept us safe.  The first WTC bombing in 1993 happened while Clinton was President.  The USS Cole (2000) was attacked, also when Clinton was in office.  Although that attack didn’t take place in America U.S. Soldiers were killed.  September 11, 2001 took place about 8 months after Clinton left office.  Which means the terrorists were allowed not only to enter the country (wasn’t Atta on watchlists), but to plot and plan our demise.  All this took place under Clinton’s watchful eye (yeah right!). 

Since 9/11 NO terrorist attacks have occurred in America and any attempts have been stopped before damage was done.  We have been kept safe under President George Bush. 

People like to say Bill Clinton was a great president, but when I ask what made him great they have no answer.  Clinton opened the gates to America and never closed them.  He also wasn’t too concerned about who was let in.  You want to blame someone for the rise in unemployment blame him.  If all these illegal immigrants weren’t here then Americans would have jobs.  We would have our health insurance and our public assistance – instead Clinton made an America that is the land of opportunity for everyone except those who were born here.