Mohave Valley, Arizona Community Blog

Home Grown in Nebraska...............

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:10:45 -0600

I would Like to take this time to thank one of our newest contributors to AR for always sharing his Polite, middle of the road opinions and political views with us...

I am proud to call this man my cyberspace friend.... Even though we have not yet had the pleasure of meeting in person I feel a deep bond with my new found friend and it grows ever deeper as I continue to be privileged to read his heartfelt words...

Happy Belated Veterens Day Mr. Dan Sanley .......

Great to see something finer than corn comes from Nebraska...................

Longtime anchor Lou Dobbs leaving CNN Updated

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:44:32 -0600

Well, Not too much I can say regarding this because I do not listen to Lou Dobbs nor CNN very much other than Larry King Live or maybe when there is a huge Live News event taking place somewhere...

I do know he is known for speaking out on Immigration and The Bailouts....

No news yet as to where he goes from here...

It is rumored possibly Fox News...

Perhaps he aspires to Politics... Who Knows....

Maybe he plans on going nowhere as I read a report that shots were fired outside his home last week... Crazy people in this world... to say the least........

I certainly wish him success where ever he goes...maybe he will make a bid for President...

Here is a clip of Lou Dobbs

Our Founding Fathers

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:56:06 -0600

"The Bible is not my book, nor Christianity my profession."
-Spoken by Abraham Lincoln,

One of the most common statements from the "Religious Right" is that they want this country to "return to the Christian principles on which it was founded".

However, a little research into American history will show that this statement is a lie. The men responsible for building the foundation of the United States had little use for Christianity, and many were strongly opposed to it. They were men of The Enlightenment, not men of Christianity. They were Deists who did not believe the bible was true.

When the Founders wrote the nation's Constitution, they specified that "no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States." (Article 6, section 3) This provision was radical in its day-- giving equal citizenship to believers and non-believers alike. They wanted to ensure that no single religion could make the claim of being the official, national religion, such as England had. Nowhere in the Constitution does it mention religion, except in exclusionary terms. The words "Jesus Christ, Christianity, Bible, and God" are never mentioned in the Constitution-- not once.

Most of the Founders were Deists, which is to say they thought the universe had a creator, but that he does not concern himself with the daily lives of humans, and does not directly communicate with humans, either by revelation or by sacred books. They spoke often of God, (Nature's God or the God of Nature), but this was not the God of the bible. They did not deny that there was a person called Jesus, and praised him for his benevolent teachings, but they flatly denied his divinity. Some people speculate that if Charles Darwin had lived a century earlier, the Founding Fathers would have had a basis for accepting naturalistic origins of life, and they would have been atheists. Most of them were stoutly opposed to the bible, and the teachings of Christianity in particular.

" The second President of the United States was John Adams, lawyer and diplomat. He wrote:

" As I understand the Christian religion, it was, and is, a revelation. But how has it happened that millions of fables, tales, legends, have been blended with both Jewish and Christian revelation that have made them the most bloody religion that ever existed?"

The third president of the United States was Thomas Jefferson. He had been the author of the Declaration of Independence . He Wrote:

"I have recently been examining all the known superstitions of the world, and do not find in our particular superstition of Christianity one redeeming feature. They are all alike founded on fables and mythology."
.We discover in the gospels a groundwork of vulgar ignorance, of things impossible, of superstition, fanaticism and fabrication ."

George Washington was a Deist like his colleagues. He was a Freemason. "His mention of Christianity was limited and superficial because he was not himself a Christian....

If the Christian Right Extremists wish to return this country to its beginnings, so be it... because it was a climate of Freethought. The Founders were students of the European Enlightenment. Half a century after the establishment of the United States, clergymen complained that no president up to that date had been a Christian.

The Founding Fathers would turn in their graves if the Christian Extremists had their way with this country.

The contents of this Post can be found in it's entirety and is a reblog by permission from Our Founding Fathers

The owner of this blog takes no credit for the words herein contained in this Post...

Please Pray for the wounded and the families...................

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:14:10 -0600

This is a terrible tragedy that we will know more about in the coming days. For now, our focus needs to be in praying for the wounded soldiers and their families,"

My thoughts and prayers are also with the families and friends of those who have been killed.

Our dedicated military men and women have sacrificed so much in service to our country, and it sickens me that the men and women of Fort Hood have been subjected to this senseless, random violence.

Here is one of the victims that needs your prayers

Army Reserve Spc. Keara Bono's family was working up to the idea of her going to Iraq.

Bono, 21, a 2006 graduate of Olathe South High School, Kansas was one of the people wounded Thursday at the Fort Hood military base in Texas. Bono called and told her mother that yes, she was one of the shooting victims, hit in the back. She had also suffered abrasions on her face.

Some things we can do in addition to our prayers

Red Cross

Community Services

American Legion

Is Major Hasan a Terroist?

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:41:13 -0600

I certainly Don't know... But do you?

Every source says it is not something that has yet to be ruled out But at this time NOTHING points to terrorism.........

Here is my question

If when this hit the news It had been announced

" Major John Silverstein" Baptist Church member, goes on shooting rampage killing 12 and injuring 30"

would he have been called a Terrorist as he was on this site within 5 minutes of the announcement of his name....... OR ... would he be called a Murderer..........

Even now after watching the news it appears he became extremely angry over Not wanting to be sent to Iraq and that he is Protesting the war...

Am I upset this man murdered men and women... Of course I am.... just as I am upset over not just every mass murder but all murders of such ungodly magnitude.....

and most especially this murder of our armed forces being readied for deployment to Iraq.....

People are murdered everyday in America.. mass murders have happened many times in our society..

Does that make these murderers "terrorists"? Semantically ...yes...

But where is the indignation of these people screaming "terrorist" against all the other mass murderers in our Country?

Where is the post calling for the torture and murder of 50-year-old Anthony Sowell who murdered (terrorized) the 11 women found in his home in Ohio this week?.....

Or do the lives of those 11 women mean less because they were not military? or could it be because his name is not Nidal Malik Hasan a Muslim....?

For Now I will definately call him a pathetic Sick Lone Nutjob........ I'll wait until the facts and the jury are in before I scream "Terroist"

FOR NOW I WILL PRAY for healing for the wounded and for the families of the dead................

Update...Shooter at Fort Hood ALIVE only injured......

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:21:33 -0600

Army Captain Nidal Malik Hasan is alive and in stable condition...

The alleged shooter is hospitalized and expected to be okay...

At this time there is no reason to believe this was in anyway a terroist related event.

The gunman acted alone in this devastating rampage.

May we continue to pray for the injured and the families of those killed and injured..........

Major Hassan....Lone Crazy Gunman Kills 11 at Fort Hood......

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:57:33 -0600

This tragedy today leaves us all saddened and glued to the news.....I join everyone in their prayers for the family and friends of the men and women killed and injured today.....

Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan was born and raised in the United States.. He is a psychiatrist from Virginia.

From what we know so far the Major was terrified of being sent to Iraq or Afghanistan and made it known on numerous occasions to family members it was what he feared most.. after listening to the horror stories from his military clients coming home from the war.......

As to whether this is what triggered today's events that pushed this misguided soul to pull the trigger and kill fellow army soldiers is not yet know...

What is even more tragic is that because of his name it leads some to YELL "Terrorist"

God Help Us..........and Forgive Us......

All I do know is this is a sad day at Fort Hood.

By Black Hills Today

Major Nidal Malik Hasan - Shooter and Killer at Ft. Hood Texas was just promoted in May of 2009 to Major reports US Army Times

The Army major suspected of opening fire on soldiers as they were preparing to deploy overseas at the massive Fort Hood military base in central Texas Thursday was an Army psychiatrist who recently completed training in treating traumatic stress disorder at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in the nation's capital.

Virginia state medical licensing records list a Nidal Malik Hasan as a psychiatrist for the Army Medical Corps, with his primary practice at Darnall Army Medical Center at Fort Hood.

At least 12 people were killed (Including Hasan) and 31 wounded in a shooting at Fort Hood Army Base near Killeen, Texas, when at least one gunmen opened fire on soldiers who were making their final deployment preparations.

S Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas told FOX News: "I do know that he has been known to have told people that he was upset about going (to Iraq)."

Virgina Board of Medicine

Hasan is from Virginia, and was single with no children. He was 39 years old. They report he is a graduate of Virginia Tech University, where he was a member of the ROTC and earned a bachelor's degree in biochemistry in 1997.

According to Lt. Gen. Bob Cone at Fort Hood, the shooter used two handguns in the attacks at the Soldier Readiness Center on Thursday around 1:30 CDT. The gunman was then shot and killed by a civilian policeman.

Black Hills Today staff send their thoughts and prayers to the families and friends killed and injured in this horrible crime.

AMA, AARP back House health care bill

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:52:49 -0600

Washington (CNN) -- The push to overhaul health care received a major boost Thursday as the American Medical Association and AARP endorsed legislation drafted by top House Democrats.

The AARP, the nation's largest organization of older Americans, is a nonpartisan group that advocates for people 50 and older. The AMA, historically an opponent of health care reform, is considered one the nation's most influential doctors' advocacy groups.

"I want to thank both organizations again for their support, and I urge Congress to listen to AARP, listen to the AMA and pass this reform for hundreds of millions of Americans who will benefit from it," President Obama said at the White House.

The above article can be read in it's entiety at: CNN

I stand corrected from a previous comment I made on another thread a few days ago... there is a 42 page managers amendment to the 1990 page Health care bill...

They are technical changes and I will investigate as to what they are and report back later in the Comment section of this post.....

As promised the Bill was made Public on Tuesday leaving the 72 hour window for the bill to be read.........

I managed to read the complete 1990 pages in partial increments over 5 days so I am certain with all the help our elected officials have with people reading different sections and reporting it's content to those elected officials.. NOT ONE of them should be voting blindly as many thought they would be...

There is now NO excuse for not knowing what is in the Bill one way or another...perhaps parts of it's verbiage may befuddle the layman's mind BUT these people have access to contract lawyers and the like.......

Clinton and Pakistan

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:04:53 -0600

On Clinton's recent trip to Pakistan her message was that Barack Obama administration stands shoulder to shoulder with Pakistan in its fight against Islamist militancy and wants a long-term relationship, moving beyond the mistakes of the past.

But on one point, Clinton was tough -- Al-Qaeda in Pakistan's tribal belt, where Pakistani troops are fighting the Taliban but the government denies Osama bin Laden and his top cohorts are hiding out.

Clinton told Pakistani newspaper editors that she believes Al-Qaeda has had safe haven in Pakistan since 2002,"

Pakistan continues to insist there is no evidence bin Laden is alive and has protested against US missile attacks against militants on its soil. Clinton says she finds it hard to believe that nobody in the Pakistan government knows where they are and couldn't get them if they really wanted to,"

Hum Mustafavi hain ( Olpers Qawaali) by Hira Fatima .

The Song Lyrics

We are and always have been, the ones who bring betterment and change, we are the followers of Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa (PBUH) "Our religion is the complete religion, Evil forces are our biggest enemy infinitely, and continous strife towards the good and betterment is our biggest weapon, By the grace of Allah"

Hoh Explains Why he resigned his Afghan Post

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 15:07:31 -0500

Hoh, a 36 year old former marine, is a State Department employee who resigned last month in protest over America's war in Afghanistan said Friday he has received an outpouring of support from Afghan-Americans and U.S. active-duty military.

In the video he tells of many men and women in uniform thanking him for his stand as they do not understand why they are there and why they are taking casualties where they don't feel they belong.......

I Pray Obama BRINGS THE TROOPS HOME .........

The Bible is too liberal: Conservative group plans to re-write

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 01:50:30 -0500

This story is a few weeks old but I feel it is well worth memtioning again for those who might have missed it .................

October 8, 2:59 PMSt. John the Baptist Parish Progressive ExaminerGregory Boyce

Photo of Old World Bible

Let me make this perfectly clear, this idiotic idea to re-write the Bible so that it better suits Conservative idelology is not indicative of how all Conservatives think, however, somewhere before taking a "wrong turn at Albuquerque" (Thanks Bugs Bunny) the Republican Party has clearly been hijacked by Far Right Religious Neocons that are determined to eliminate any Biblical reference of love and compassion that was taught by Jesus Christ that does not fit their political agenda.

The Party that has embarrassed America by embracing the "Birthers" movement, supported crazies that carry guns to Presidential rallies (What's next carrying guns to parks and recreational centers?) turned a blind eye to Far Right wackos who believe that President Obama is actually a Muslim "Manchurian Candidate" who happens to also be the Anti-Christ, now gives us "Jesus Christ the Left Wing Hippie". America and the world can only wait and see what will be edited from the most read book in the world. Will it be the verse that reads "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God", or will it be the passage that states "He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God". I'm not sure but don't these Bible verses contradict "today's" Conservative ideology?

CLICK HERE TO READ MR. BOYCE"S FULL STORY

Fox news Poll on Economy backfires...............

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 01:33:23 -0500

Fox News Poll: Most Blame Bush for Economy

By David Weigel 10/30/09 9:58 AM

Here's a somewhat surprising result from the new Fox News poll. Asked which president is "more responsible for the current state of the economy," only 18 percent say President Obama. Fifty-eight percent say former President George W. Bush. Nine percent blame both of them. Republicans are the only subgroup of voters who blame Obama, and only by a six-point margin of 35 percent to 29 percent.

What's striking about this is that the numbers have only marginally gotten worse for President Obama in the three months since Fox News last asked this question. In July, it was 16 percent who blamed Obama and 61 percent who blamed Bush. That is, needless to say, not what Fox News viewers hear when they tune into the network. But it's essential to understanding why the president remains popular and why Republicans are failing to really capitalize on economic gloom.

So who's still advertising on Beck? October 30 edition ...

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 23:15:43 -0500

So who's still advertising on Beck? October 30 edition ...

October 30, 2009 10:33 pm ET by Media Matters staff

Eighty advertisers have reportedly dropped their ads from Glenn Beck's Fox News program since he called President Obama a "racist" who has a "deep-seated hatred of white people." Here are his October 30 sponsors, in the order they appeared:

Goldline International

U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Lifestyle Lift

LifeLock

National Review

Tony Chachere's

The Jewelry Exchange

Roche

Rosland Capital

Tax Masters

FreeEnterpriseAmerica.com

Foundation for a Better Life

The Villages

Consumer Debt Advocate

Hydrolyze

Source

Personally I have not heard of many of the Sponsers left above

and I have heard of almost every one of the 84 below.........

What sponsers has he lost?

Total number of companies that refuse to have ads run on Glenn Beck: 84

The boycott is working: It is being reported that the Glenn Beck show is losing more than 50% of its weekly ad revenue as a result of this boycott. Keep it up!

To date (10/20/09), here is the full list of sponsors that have pulled ads from the Glenn Beck Program:

Aegon (added 9/14/09)

Airmiles.co.uk (added 10/20/09)

Allergan (added 8/17/09)

Ally Bank/GMAC Financial Services (added 8/17/09)

AmMed Direct (added 10/6/09)

Ancestry.com (added 8/24/09)

Applebee's (added 8/27/09)

Ashley Furniture (added 8/28/09)

AT&T (added 8/24/09)

Bank of America (added 8/25/09)

Bell & Howell (added 8/27/09)

Best Buy (added 8/17/09)

Binder & Binder (added 9/2/09)

Blaine Labs (anti-fungal & scar treatments) (added 8/24/09)

Brez (anti-snoring strips) by Airware Inc. (added 8/21/09)

Broadview Security (added 8/17/09)

Campbell's Soup Co. (added 8/24/09)

Capital One (added 9/2/09)

Citrix Online (added 10/6/09)

Clorox (added 8/23/09)

Closing.com (Closing Corp.) (added 8/28/09) (read statement here)

Concord Music Group (added 10/6/09)

CVS (added 8/17/09)

Dannon Co. (added 9/2/09)

Diageo (Guinness, Cuervo, Baileys', etc) (added 10/5/09)

DirecTV (added 8/27/09)

Discover (added 9/2/09)

DITECH (added 8/24/09)

EggLands Best (added 9/21/09)

Elations Co. (added 8/24/09)

Equifax (added 10/6/09)

Eulactol USA (maker of Flexitol) (added 10/6/09)

Farmers Insurance Group

FreeCreditReport.com/Experian (added 8/24/09)

GEICO

General Mills (added 8/27/09)

GetARoom.com (added 10/6/09)

Healthy Choice (owned by CongAgra)

Hoffman La Roche (maker of Boniva) (added 10/6/09)

HSBC (added 9/2/09)

Humana (added 9/14/09)

ICAN Benefit Group Insurance (added 9/2/09)

Infiniti (added 9/2/09)

Jelmar (CLR cleaner manufacturer) (added 9/2/09)

Johnson & Johnson (added 8/24/09)

Jordan McKenna Debt Counseling Network (added 9/2/09)

KRAFT Foods (added 8/20/09) (read statement here)

Lawyers.com (owned by LexisNexis)

Lowe's (added 8/24/09)

Luxottica Retail (parent company of Pearle & LensCrafters) (added 9/14/09)

Mars (maker of Snickers, M&Ms, Pedigree, etc..) (added 10/20/09) (read statement here)

Men's Wearhouse

Mercedes-Benz (added 9/2/09)

Metropolitan Talent Management (added 10/6/09)***

NutriSystem (added 8/24/09)

ooVoo (added 10/6/09)

Overture Films (added 10/6/09)

Procter & Gamble

Progressive Insurance

Radio Shack

Re-Bath (added 8/17/09)

Regions Financial Corporation (added 8/27/09)

Roche *

S.C. Johnson

SAM (Store and Move) (added 8/27/09)

Sanofi-Aventis

Sargento Cheese

Scarguard (added 10/6/09)

Schiff Nutrition (maker of Tiger's Milk & Fi-Bar) (added 10/6/09)

Seoul Metropolitan Government (added 10/6/09)

Simplex Healthcare (Diabetes Care Club) (added 9/2/09)

Sprint (added 8/23/09)

State Farm Insurance

Subaru (added 10/6/09)

Toyota-Lexus (added 10/6/09)

Travelers Insurance (added 8/27/09)

Travelocity

UPS (added 8/23/09)

United States Postal Service (added 9/14/09)

Verizon Wireless (added 8/21/09)

Vonage (added 8/24/09)

Waitrose (added 10/4/09) **

Walmart (added 8/17/09)

Woodland Power Products (added 10/6/09)

Wyeth Consumer Healthcare (added 9/14/09)

SOURCE

Media conservatives try to resurrect "death panel" myth

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 22:55:42 -0500

Linking to an Associated Press article about Medicare coverage for voluntary end-of-life counseling in the House health care bill, conservative media outlets such as Fox News and BigGovernment.com have featured misleading headlines to revive the widely debunked "death panel" smear. Fox News' Peter Johnson Jr. also stated during an interview with Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), "So with regard to the death panel, nothing much has changed."

Fox & Friends, BigGovernment, FoxNews.com misleadingly refer to "death panels

"

In fact, the AP article reported that the provision covers voluntary counseling and never said that "death panels" were in the bill

AP headline actually stated, "It's alive! End-of-life counseling in health bill."'

The AP reported, "The Medicare end-of-life planning provision that 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said was tantamount to 'death panels' for seniors is staying in the latest Democratic health care bill unveiled Thursday." The AP further stated: "The legislation would allow Medicare to pay for a counseling session with a doctor or clinical professional once every five years. The bill calls for such sessions to be 'completely' voluntary, and prohibits the encouragement or promotion of suicide or assisted suicide. The counseling provision is supported by doctors' groups and AARP, the seniors' lobby."

Health care bill still does not contain death panels. Not only does the House health care bill not contain death panels, it does not make end-of-life counseling mandatory. From Section 1233, "Voluntary Advance Care Planning Consultation," of HR 3962:

SOURCE

It is one thing to judge this bill on it's Merits and it's REAL problems..........

BUT Could someone please explain why the Conservatives are outright LYING about what is or isn't in the Bill..........

SEVERAL OF THE PROPAGANDIZED CLAIMS BY LIMBAUGH, FOX NEWS AND OTHERS HAVE ALREADY BEEN DEBUNKED...

CAN WE PLESE STICK TO WHAT IS ACTUALLY IN THE BILL?

Yes, many fear it will raise taxes and put the U.S. further in to debt BUT come on let's at least deal with the REAL DEAL and NOT LIES................

Limbaugh falsely claimed House bill "prohibits the sale" of private individual insurance

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 22:27:11 -0500

Rush Limbaugh falsely claimed that "page 94" of the recently released House health care bill "prohibits the sale of private individual health insurance policies beginning in 2013."

LIMBAUGH: Page 94, Pelosi plan, prohibits the sale of private, individual health insurance policies beginning in 2013, forcing individuals to purchase coverage through the federal government. 2013, after the 2012 presidential election. In 2013, there is no private insurance allowed. The sale of it will be prohibited.

In fact, the provision at issue states that private individual policies can be sold, but only through the Health Insurance Exchange and subject to its regulations.

IN GENERAL.-Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer offering such coverage does not enroll any individual in such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the first day of Y1.

(B) DEPENDENT COVERAGE PERMITTED.-Subparagraph (A) shall not affect the subsequent enrollment of a dependent of an individual who is covered as of such first day.

(2) LIMITATION ON CHANGES IN TERMS OR CONDITIONS.-Subject to paragraph (3) and except as required by law, the issuer does not change any of its terms or conditions, including benefits and cost-sharing, from those in effect as of the day before the first day of Y1.

(2)   RESTRICTIONS ON PREMIUM INCREASES.-The issuer cannot vary the percentage increase in the premium for a risk group of enrollees in specific grandfathered health insurance coverage without changing the premium for all enrollees in the same risk group at the same rate, as specified by the Commissioner.

GEE RESTRICTIONS PLACED ON PRIVATE INSURANCE COMPANIES AFTER 2013 TO PROTECT US THE CONSUMER...

WHO WOULDA THOUGHT OF SUCH A THING............

So much for those who get their news from Rush Limbaugh

Source

Witness at Haditha

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:49:56 -0500

Some here, myself included, are following the Story of the Haditha Incident that took place in 2005.........

As one begins to dig deeper there certainly remains room for doubt as to what actually took place that long ago day in Iraq...

One certainly should question the witness's to this event and their unwavering testimony that unarmed civilians, including women and children, were shot at close range by at least one marine...

We must question why this young Marine and a young Iraqi girl who survived the event, testifying she saw an American in uniform shoot her family members with a rifle...would lie?

One girl, who appears to be about 11, said, "We opened the door. My father was dead. We sat there. An American came in and shot at us. I pretended to be dead." An older man, about 55, said, "They opened the door and threw in a grenade. Then they went in and there were women and children inside. And they eliminated the family, and these children were only two or three years old."

Complete Story ...Witness at Haditha  Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz

Dela Cruz himself insists that he is simply doing what a good Marine must do: tell the truth.

Read his account and you decide....

Military Cover-up or Marine and Iraqi girl Lie.....

IMMEDIATE Reforms in the Health Bill....not 3 years from now...........

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:37:39 -0500

For those whpo have not read the bill and think none of it starts for three years ................

TITLE I-IMMEDIATE REFORMS

Sec. 101. National high-risk pool program.

Sec. 102. Ensuring value and lower premiums.

Sec. 103. Ending health insurance rescission abuse.

Sec. 104. Sunshine on price gouging by health insurance issuers.

Sec. 105. Requiring the option of extension of dependent coverage for uninsured

young adults.

Sec. 106. Limitations on preexisting condition exclusions in group health plans

in advance of applicability of new prohibition of preexisting

condition exclusions.

Sec. 107. Prohibiting acts of domestic violence from being treated as preexisting

conditions.

Sec. 108. Ending health insurance denials and delays of necessary treatment

for children with deformities.

Sec. 109. Elimination of lifetime limits.

Sec. 110. Prohibition against postretirement reductions of retiree health benefits

by group health plans.

Sec. 111. Reinsurance program for retirees.

Sec. 112. Wellness program grants.

Sec. 113. Extension of COBRA continuation coverage.

Sec. 114. State Health Access Program grants.

Sec. 115. Administrative simplification.

THE LT. COL CHESSANI CASE:Good and Bad News

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:19:30 -0500

Gov Decides Not to Appeal Further in LtCol Chessani Case;

LtCol Jeffrey Chessani, USMC
Jeffrey Chessani had an exemplary record. He was on his third tour in Iraq as Battalion Commander
During his military career he has participated Operation Just Cause (1989 Invasion of Panama), the 1991 Gulf war and most recently the Iraq War (Operation Iraqi Freedom).

Here's the good news:

A government official has informed the Thomas More Law Center that the government will not seek to appeal the recent unanimous decision by the Navy Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals (NMCCA) in favor of LtCol Jeffrey Chessani, USMC.

The decision makes permanent the ruling by the trial court judge, Colonel Steven A. Folsom, USMC, dismissing the charges against LtCol Chessani, without prejudice, due to Unlawful Command Influence. The government could have sought an appeal to the civilian Court of Appeals of the Armed Forces (CAAF), and then to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Bad News:

LtCol Jeffrey Chessani will face a Military Board of Inquiry (BOI) before year's end to determine whether he should be demoted in rank This essentially an investigation or administrative fact finding procedure that has been around for a long, long time. The Marine Corps, except in the case of Marine Special Operations (Fox) Company, has not used this procedure since 1956.

We need to maintain the support for LtCol Jeff Chessani and his famiiy. Everyone needs to do whatever they can for this Marine, whether it is commenting on a blog, writing a letter, or reaching into our pockets to help with his defense fund. He needs to know there are a lot of people on his side that recognize his loyalty and dedication to his country..

WE MUST SUPPORT THIS GREAT HERO WHO HAS RISKED HIS LIFE FOR OUR FREEDOMS FOR 20 YEARS

The Board of Inquiry will take place at Camp Pendleton, California. Beginning the first of December it will last several weeks.

The Thomas More Law Center To Donate and read the Full Story about his case. PLEASE DO WHAT YOU CAN FOR THIS BRAVE MARINE, HIS WIFE AND SEVEN CHILDREN.

Pelosi: New Health Care Bill Is "Historic Moment"

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:15:21 -0500
Let us pray they get this passed by Year's end... what a great way to start the New Year...... 2010 ...............The Year of Hope.............. this has been 60 years in the making ......We need to not be passive about this people...I urge you to call your House and Congress Representatives and urge them to get this bill Passed ................ This is Not a "right" or "left" issue ...It is a "Humanity" issue... What is best For all americans.... It all boils down to $$$$$ OR LIVES.................I am FOR LIFE

Obama signs 2010 US defence budget

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:57:54 -0500

President Obama, has signed into law a $680bn defence budget for the next fiscal year, which includes $170bn in funding for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"I have always rejected the notion that we have to waste billions of dollars of taxpayer money to keep this nation secure," Obama said at the signing ceremony, which was also attended by Robert Gates, the US defence secretary, and Joe Biden, the country's vice-president.

"I think wasting these dollars makes us less secure. That is why we have passed a defence bill that eliminates some of the waste and inefficiency in our defence process; reforms that will better protect our nation, better protect our troops and save taxpayers tens of billions of dollars," Obama said.

Hate crimes definition

In the 2010 budget, funding has been cut to no-bid contracts and several defence contracts that have cost far more than anticipated due to protracted delays.

The bill also contained an expansion to the definition of federal hate crimes, to include criminal acts based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

"After more than a decade of opposition and delay, we've passed inclusive hate crimes legislation to help protect our citizens from violence based on what they look like, who they love, how they pray or who they are," Obama said.

The expansion to the hate crimes law had been sought by civil rights and gay rights groups but conservatives had opposed it, saying that it could silence groups or individuals who are opposed to homosexuality on religious or philosophical grounds.

The measure is named in honour of Matthew Shepard, the gay Wyoming college student who was murdered 11 years ago.

Al Jeezera to Read Full Story

Bob Dole: Health Care Will Pass, GOP Should Be Open To Reform

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:04:26 -0500

Bob Dole: Health Care Will Pass, GOP Should Be Open To Reform

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/07/bob-dole-health-care-will_n_312837.html

Former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kans.) told reporters on Wednesday that opposition to the president's health care package was driven, in part, by knee-jerk partisanship and he urged Congressional Republicans to consider backing a version of reform.

The 1996 Republican presidential candidate also predicted, following a speech at a health care reform summit in Kansas, that "there will be a signing ceremony" for a reform bill sometime this year or early in 2010.

But the comments that seem likely to create the most ripples were those that dealt with Congressional opposition to the White House. Dole, according to reports, framed the pushback to Barack Obama's reform agenda as almost perfunctory in nature.

Sometimes people fight you just to fight you," he said, according to The Kansas City Star. "They don't want Reagan to get it, they don't want Obama to get it, so we've got to kill it..."

"Health care is one of those things," he added. "Now we've got to do something."

"Dole's comments come at a time when other major GOP figures - all from outside Washington - have also urged the party to approach the issue of health care in a more collaborative matter. The list includes California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and former Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson. But Dole's remarks went a bit further- not just lamenting the lack of bipartisan compromise on reform but calling out individuals inside his own party.

Let's Hope Dole has it right... America NEEDS Health Care reform ...

President Obama to meet Friday with Joint Chiefs

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:17:39 -0500

October 27, 2009

President Obama to meet Friday with Joint Chiefs

President Obama is adding another meeting to his Afghanistan troop decision process. Friday he will meet with the Joint Chiefs at the White House where he will get input from other service branches on the proceedings. Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters traveling with the President aboard Air Force One that Mr. Obama's decision "will come in the coming weeks." Gibbs would not say if the meeting with the Joint Chiefs is one of the last pieces of the decision-making process but admitted "we're getting certainly toward the end of it."

It is my Hope and prayer that our President will make the decision to bring our troops home soon and safely.

No more troops to Afghanistan Mr. President. Enough lives have been sacrificied by our brave men and women. It is time to bring home our brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, family and friends.

US official resigns over Afghan war

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:56:44 -0500

With the News of the first contracted U S political representative to resign.

Let's hope that it will move the President to Bring Our troops Home Soon......and above all NOT send more in to harm's way

Hoh, a former Marine has resigned in Protest of our troops being in Afghanistan and is opposed to McChrystal's call for more troops.

I believe as does Hoh, there is NO winning this war with ground troops. These terrorists are many times unrecognizable and sometimes invisible.

A US official has resigned from his contract post in Afghanistan over the US-led war, becoming the first US political representative to step down in protest at the conflict since it began eight years ago.

Matthew Hoh, who was a key civilian representative for the US government in Afghanistan's Zabul province, said in a letter released on Tuesday that he had "lost understanding of, and confidence in, the strategic purposes of the United States' presence in Afghanistan".

"I have doubts and reservations about our current strategy and planned future strategy, but my resignation is based not upon how we are pursuing this war, but why and to what end," the letter, which was dated September 10, said.

Hoh, a former Marine Corps captain and Iraq veteran, also turned down a senior staff-level job at the US embassy in Kabul after he resigned from his one-year contract position as a political officer in Zabul.

He was then called to Washington to meet Richard Holbrooke, the US special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"We took his letter very seriously, because he was a good officer," Holbrooke said in an interview with The Washington Post.

Hoh was initially convinced to stay by Holbrooke's insistence that he would be more effective inside government, but he changed his mind days later and once more handed in his resignation.

Speaking to the Washington Post, Hoh said that his resignation, which became final on Wednesday, was tendered because staying in his post "was not the right thing to do."

""There is already support coming from liberal quarters [in the US] for what Matthew Hoh wrote in his resignation letter, which indicated that, in his view, the US has the wrong perception of who the enemy is inside Afghanistan," she said.

'Bloodbath'

In his letter, Hoh said that many Afghans fight US forces because of their presence in the country and pointed to similarities with the Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan which ended with a humiliating withdrawal in 1989.

"Like the Soviets, we continue to secure and bolster a failing state, while encouraging an ideology and system of government unknown and unwanted by its people," he wrote.

Hoh urged the Obama administration to reduce the number of US troops in Afghanistan,while calling for more support for neighbouring Pakistan in its fight against fighters allied to the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

Hoh's appeal for Obama to pull US troops out of Afghanistan is in contrast to the call by the senior commander of US and Nato forces in the country to send more soldiers.

General Stanley McChrystal is reported to have asked Obama for 40,000 more troops to be deployed to Afghanistan, to fight a war that the military commander says the US is currently at risk of losing.

Obama has said that he will not make a decision on troop numbers until a review of military strategy in Afghanistan is completed.

For complete Story Al Jeezera

Government To Say Recession Is Over, Despite Continuing Unemployment

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 01:42:03 -0500

Tuesday October 27, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - It's about to become official: The recession is over - but not the pain.

The government will release figures this week expected to show that the economy has awakened from its deepest slump since the 1930s and is in the early stages of a recovery. How can both be possible?

The government releases third-quarter Gross Domestic Product figures on Thursday. Many forecasters say they will show GDP growing at an annual rate of about 3 percent, validating a widely held belief among economists that the recession ended in June or July.

But try telling that to the more than 15 million still unemployed, the small businesses and individuals who can't get loans and the people whose homes are worth less than their mortgages.

Assertions by government and private economists that the recession is over - issued amid graphic examples of continuing wide distress - are raising fresh questions about economic scorekeeping.

A survey of economic forecasters prepared by Blue Chip Economic Indicators, a research organization, predicted GDP growth to remain positive in each quarter through the end of 2010. In a survey by the National Association of Business Economics, 34 of 43 economists polled said the recession is over.

"From a technical perspective, the recession is very likely over," said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

Stocks have surged about 50 percent since their March lows. And a year after Washington rescued the financial industry, some large banks and Wall Street firms have roared back to profitability.

Economists suggest some of the expected increase in economic growth is a bounce off the bottom. They attribute it to government stimulus spending, including the now-expired Cash for Clunkers program; accommodative Fed monetary policies and widespread cost-cutting by companies.

To Keep things in perspective ...........even though the recession is over...........

"Absent robust job growth, it is not a true economic recovery," said White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein.

To read the article in full.. Air America

The Filibuster Four: CALL TODAY.......

Linda Mae McCannon (928) 768-3040 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 01:16:30 -0500

The Filibuster Four: Target These Senators To Protect Public Option

Yesterday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced that he will include the public option with an opt-out clause for states in the final Senate health reform legislation. He will need all 60 votes in the Democratic caucus to get it passed. Huffington Post political reporter Sam Stein names "names" on Montel Across America with guest host Karen Finney, putting them in a group we like to call, the Filibuster Four: Senators Ben Nelson, Mary Landrieu, Blanche Lincoln, and Joseph Lieberman.

Call or write these Senators now to keep the pressure on them to vote yes on the public option.

DC and State office numbers:

Senator Lieberman - (202) 224-4041 (860) 549-8463 (800) 225-5605
Senator Nelson - (202) 224-6551 (402) 391-3411 (402) 441-4600
Senator Landreau - (202) 224-5824 (504) 589-2427
Senator Lincoln - (202) 224-4843 (501) 375-2993