Coup d'état in Michigan

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Great report- lluminating reporting on Michigan state legislature’s coup d'état. A U.S. story, the nation, the world would be wise to continue to follow. Gutting human rights in a country that claims freedom and justice as center pieces to our way of life seems like the wrong path. Trusting blindly will lead us off a cliff where democracy lost its way and, one day, we will wonder how this happened under our watch.

We need well informed voters. So often, those we put in office, don’t want constituents to know what they are putting in our ordinances and laws, whether it be local school committees or U.S. Congress, U.S Supreme Court or the Administration. Often, they would rather we don’t get involved, so that they can get away with things, while we are ignorant. As long as we trust them to do the right thing, while we are just getting through our days, they can usurp our assumed freedoms. Do our politicians really want us to be well-educated and involved in our “We the People” government?

The CEO’s, who put millions of dollars in the coffers of elected politicians’ campaigns, are buying our “elected politicians” and having their way. And the U.S. Supreme Court made it “ethically” acceptable in Citizens United.

Low and middle income U.S. citizens need to inform themselves of who we put in office and be aware of what they do, once there. Otherwise, we will become less and less empowered. And figuratively will be “slaves” of the CEO’s who “own” our “elected” politicians.


Benton Harbor takeover sparks furious reaction

Opponents mobilize protests, repeal campaign

By Eartha Jane Melzer | 04.20.11

A portion of the article (click the title of article to read full article):

The impoverished former industrial town of Benton Harbor has become a flashpoint in the controversy over the new law that allows the governor to appoint Emergency Managers with virtually unlimited authority over local governments.

On Thursday the state-appointed Emergency Manager Joe Harris used the expanded powers granted by the new law to issue an order banning the city commission from taking any action without his written permission.

Benton Harbor City Commissioner Juanita Henry says her constituents are angry and looking for help, but without the power to hold meetings the city commission can’t even provide an official venue for citizens to ask questions and get answers.

“They are using Benton Harbor as a test case,“ Henry said. “If they have disenfranchised the people so badly they just don’t respond to anything, they can do this all over the country.”

Community activist Rev. Edward Pinkney said that many Benton Harbor residents only learned that their city government had been sacked by reading about it in the paper days later.

Read the full article: Benton Harbor takeover sparks furious reaction


Facebook page - Rick Snyder Wrong for Michigan


Judge removes Flint emergency, restores mayor and city council; State planning appeal

By Kristin Longley | klongley1@mlive.com

LANSING, Michigan -- A judge ordered Flint emergency manager Michael Brown out of office today, ruling that the state violated the law in appointing him to oversee the cash-strapped city.

In her ruling, Ingham County Circuit Court Judge Rosemarie Aquilina also reinstated Flint Mayor Dayne Walling and the City Council, who lost their authority under state law after the emergency manager was appointed.

Read the full article: Judge removes Flint emergency

ON A SCALE OF 1 TO 10 HOW DUMB ARE THE USA VOTERS?

I think there should be a required test that you not only have to pass with a B or above, but the completed test should be made public - online - before you can accept the nomination for President or Vice-President.

And I think we should get to submit questions for the test.

We have a tight race between an intelligent and articulate candidate - Barack Obama and one, John McCain, who has spoken with so many mistakes - mixing up countries that don't exist anymore, associating the wrong Presidents with the appropriate countries, confusing Shiites and Sunnis when talking about Al Qaeda in Iraq and lying repeatedly about Barack Obama - then selecting a running mate he met...once, before he offered the job. Thank goodness, Russia is next to Alaska otherwise we wouldn't be able to have any confidence in Sarah Palin's international knowledge. She did get her passport, but that doesn't comfort me.

Many times, John McCain has stammered and looked like a deer caught in headlights when asked a question. This alone makes me question his intelligence.

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Maps of the world
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New Hampshire Primary night
Uploaded January 09, 2008 by BarackObamadotcom

Why Won't McCain Vote for the GI Bill?

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John McCain and Mortgages
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If I have to listen to John McCain and Sarah Palin for the next four years I will have to consider how I can cope. It will be a problem. Any country looking for good USA expatriates?

I NEED SOME HOPE

VOTE

OBAMA - BIDEN 2008

McCAIN - SPAIN IS IN EUROPE and WHEN YOU SPEAK I GET A SICK FEELING

John McCain ranked 894 out of 899 in college.

Fifth from the bottom.







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John McCain interviewed
This includes the question about Spain and Spain's President Zapatero
Uploaded by tpmtv

I CAN'T STAND IT - McCAIN CAN'T GET STRAIGHT WHAT THE QUESTION IS

Repeatedly John McCain says stupid things,
contradicts himself,
lies,
makes stuff up,
and chose Sarah Palin as the first person in line if he dies to run the country

JOHN McCAIN IS NOT FIT TO BE PRESIDENT

but that doesn't mean the USA won't elect him as President

We are on shaky ground, here.

I have tried to restrain myself about John McCain. But McCain scares me. And the fact that so many USA citizens feel McCain is the one to lead the USA causes me to be very worried.

I know I'm not qualified to lead this country. And I am smarter than John McCain or Sarah Palin. The fact that these two think they are qualified to be President scares the living daylights out of me.

The rest of the world has to think we are stupid.



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John McCain didn't know who the President of Spain was or that Spain is a democracy that USA is friendly with.
Here is a report on John McCain and Spain

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/217710.php

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Chris Matthews interviews Republican Representative Eric Cantor

Email Chris: hardball@msnbc.com

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Brian Williams and the financial disaster

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Barack Obama and John McCain speak about the financial disaster this week.

Uploaded by jedreport

John McCain and the Lying Game

By Joe Klein

Politics has always been lousy with blather and chicanery. But there are rules and traditions too. In the early weeks of the general-election campaign, a consensus has grown in the political community"a consensus that ranges from practitioners like Karl Rove to commentators like, well, me"that John McCain has allowed his campaign to slip the normal bounds of political propriety. The situation has gotten so intense that we in the media have slipped our normal rules as well. Usually when a candidate tells something less than the truth, we mince words. We use euphemisms like mendacity and inaccuracy ... or, as the Associated Press put it, "McCain's claims skirt facts." But increasing numbers of otherwise sober observers, even such august institutions as the New York Times editorial board, are calling John McCain a liar. You might well ask, What has McCain done to deserve this? What unwritten rules did he break? Are his transgressions of degree or of kind?

Almost every politician stretches the truth. We journalists try to point out the exaggerations and criticize them, then let the voters decide. When McCain says, for example, that Barack Obama favors a government-run health-care system, he's not telling the truth"Obama wants a market-based system subsidized by the government"but McCain's untruth illuminates a general policy direction, which is sketchy but sort of within the bounds. (Obama's plan would increase government regulation of the drug and insurance industries.) Obama has done this sort of thing too. In July, he accused McCain of supporting the foreign buyout of an American company that could lead to the loss of about 8,000 jobs in Wilmington, Ohio. McCain did support the deal, but the job loss comes many years later and was not anticipated at the time. That, however, is where the moral equivalency between these two campaigns ends.

McCain's lies have ranged from the annoying to the sleazy, and the problem is in both degree and kind. His campaign has been a ceaseless assault on his opponent's character and policies, featuring a consistent"and witting"disdain for the truth. Even after 38 million Americans heard Obama say in his speech at the Democratic National Convention that he was open to offshore oil-drilling and building new nuclear-power plants, McCain flatly said in his acceptance speech that Obama opposed both. Normal political practice would be for McCain to say, "Obama says he's 'open to' offshore drilling, but he's always opposed it. How can we believe him?" This persistence in repeating demonstrably false charges is something new in presidential politics.

Worse than the lies have been the smears. McCain ran a television ad claiming that Obama favored "comprehensive" sex education for kindergartners. (Obama favored a bill that would have warned kindergartners about sexual predators and improper touching.) The accusation that Obama was referring to Sarah Palin when he said McCain's effort to remarket his economic policies was putting "lipstick on a pig" was another clearly misleading attack"an obnoxious attempt to divert attention from Palin's lack of fitness for the job and the recklessness with which McCain chose her. McCain's assault on the "�lite media" for spreading rumors about Palin's personal life"actually, the culprits were a few bloggers and the tabloid press"was more of the same. And that gets us close to the real problem here. The McCain camp has decided that its candidate can't win honorably, on the issues, so it has resorted to transparent and phony diversions.

This new strategy emerged during the first week of Obama's overseas trip in late July. McCain had been intending to contrast his alleged foreign policy expertise and toughness with Obama's inexperience and alleged weakness. McCain wanted to "win" the Iraq war and face down the Iranians. But those issues became moot when the Iraqis said they favored Obama's withdrawal plan and the Bush Administration started talking to the Iranians. At that point, McCain committed his original sin"out of pique, I believe"questioning Obama's patriotism, saying the Democrat would rather lose a war than lose an election. Ever since, McCain's campaign has been a series of snide and demeaning ads accompanied by the daily gush of untruths that have now been widely documented and exposed. The strategy is an obvious attempt to camouflage the current unpopularity of his Republican brand, the insubstantiality of his vice-presidential choice, and his agreement on most issues"especially economic matters"with an exceedingly unpopular President.

The good news is that the vile times may be ending. The coming debates will decide this race, and it isn't easy to tell lies when your opponent is standing right next to you. The Wall Street collapse demands a more sober campaign as well. But these dreadful weeks should not be forgotten. John McCain has raised serious questions about whether he has the character to lead the nation. He has defaced his beloved military code of honor. He has run a dirty campaign.

Source: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1842030,00.html

I'M FOR OBAMA AND BIDEN

A few months ago, I bought both of Barack Obama's books that he wrote. And today, I started to read Dreams of My Father -A Story of Race and Inheritance. He is a good writer. And brave to open up as he did.

His second book is The Audacity of Hope-Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream

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Yes We Can to Equality and Justice

John McCain ranked 894 out of 899 in college. Fifth from the bottom.

BARACK OBAMA ON JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE

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Barack Obama on Jimmy Kimmel
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June 16, 2008

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Barack Obama addresses a crowd at Kettering University on competitiveness in the 21st century. June 16, 2008.


Former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Al Gore will endorse Senator Obama tonight in Detroit, Michigan.

This email was received before Al Gore spoke June 16, 2008:

Dear Sandra,

A few hours from now I will step on stage in Detroit, Michigan to announce my support for Senator Barack Obama. From now through Election Day, I intend to do whatever I can to make sure he is elected President of the United States.

Over the next four years, we are going to face many difficult challenges -- including bringing our troops home from Iraq, fixing our economy, and solving the climate crisis. Barack Obama is clearly the candidate best able to solve these problems and bring change to America.

This moment and this election are too important to let pass without taking action.

That's why I am asking you to join me in showing your support by making a contribution to this campaign today:

https://donate.barackobama.com/gore

Over the past 18 months, Barack Obama has united a movement. He knows change does not come from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue or Capitol Hill. It begins when people stand up and take action.

With the help of millions of supporters like you, Barack Obama will bring the change we so desperately need in order to solve our country's most pressing problems.

If you've already contributed to this campaign, I ask that you consider making another contribution right now. If you haven't, please take the next step and own a piece of this campaign today:

https://donate.barackobama.com/gore

On the issues that matter most, Barack Obama is clearly the right choice to lead our nation.

We have a lot of work to do in the next few months to elect Barack Obama president, and it begins by making a contribution to this campaign today.

Thank you for joining me,

Al Gore

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Barack Obama's Speech on Father's Day
Barack addressed the congregation at the Apostolic Church of God in Chicago, IL on June 15, 2008.


Lies and the Truth about Barack Obama

Who is Behind these Lies?

Roger Stone boasts about being the sleaziest man in politics and that his rules are “Attack, attack, attack—never defend” and “Admit nothing, deny everything, launch counterattack.” As a young operative, Stone was involved in Watergate, causing him to be fired by Bob Dole. Stone was also forced to cut ties with New York Senate Republicans after he left a harassing message on the voicemail of Eliot Spitzer’s father. Even Republican Ed Rollins says Stone “always had this reputation of being a guy who exaggerated things, who pretended he did things. Roger was never on Nixon’s staff, was never on the White House staff. I don’t think you’ll find anyone in the business who trusts him. Roger was always a little rat.” Stone recently said “McCain himself should not run a slash-and-burn campaign, but a slash-and-burn campaign will have to be run by others.”

Floyd Brown, the leader of the National Campaign Fund, the Legacy Committee, Citizens for a Safe and Prosperous America and the Policy Issues Institute, once bragged he was part of the “the heart and soul of the right-wing conspiracy.” has a history of surfacing every four years to make right-wing attacks against Democrats in presidential elections. Most infamously, Brown was responsible for the racist 1988 “Willie Horton” ad against Michael Dukakis. Brown harassed the Clintons throughout Bill Clinton’s administration, with even George H.W. Bush calling his behavior in the 1992 presidential election—which included harassing the family of a recent suicide victim—“filthy campaign tactics.” After writing a 2000 book about Al Gore that went little-noticed, in 2004, Brown and David Bossie, working as the group Citizens United, make a movie called Celsius 41.11 and ran television ads attacking John Kerry.

David Bossie, who runs Citizens United, has paired with Floyd Brown for years. Bossie and Brown harassed the Clintons throughout Bill Clinton’s administration, with even George H.W. Bush calling his behavior in the 1992 presidential election—which included harassing the family of a recent suicide victim—“filthy campaign tactics.” After writing a 2000 book about Al Gore that went little-noticed, in 2004, Brown and Bossie, working as the group Citizens United, made a movie called Celsius 41.11 and ran television ads attacking John Kerry. In 1998, Bossie was fired from his job with the House Committee investigating Bill Clinton. When Bossie selectively released tapes, removing information that exonerated the Clintons, and improperly obtained phone records, even Newt Gingrich said he was “embarrassed for the conference at the circus that went on.”

Source: Behind the Smears

DON'T FORGET DARFUR

1-800-GENOCIDE

www.savedarfur.org
WWW.GENOCIDEINTERVENTION.NET

HILLARY SPILLED IT ~ ASSASSINATION POSSIBILITY AS A REASON TO STAY IN THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN SUMMONS HOPE IN A DARK WAY

HILLARY HAS BEEN LOOKING FOR A WAY TO WIN ~ IF VOTES DON'T WORK ~ IF MATH CANNOT BE MANIPULATED

SHE IS WAITING FOR ASSASSINATION

If she can't win it, she can always be in the wings in case there is an assassination.

What Hillary wants us to know, on at least a subconscious level, is that assassination is just another reason not to suspend her run for the White House.

Hillary took the air out of her balloon.

In a nutshell, I was raised Republican, but by the time I graduated college with my first degree I had transformed into a Democrat. While I was in college, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated and also Robert Kennedy was assassinated. Robert Kennedy's brother, John F Kennedy, was assassinated when he was President while I was a freshman in high school. Malcolm X was also assassinated when I was in high school.

I have been a strong supporter of Senator Barack Obama for President, volunteering in New Hampshire for a week leading up to the primary there, in my state of Rhode Island and doing phone banking for the New Jersey primary. This is all outside my comfort zone, but I chose to do it because this candidate was important enough for me to step outside of my comfort zone.

I have been appalled at Senator Hillary Clinton's campaign continuously. Instead of listing point by point of the times I have been appalled, many of the points are listed in this video.
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Special Comment about Hillary Clinton and her Assassination comment as a reason to remain in the race despite no way for her to win by votes

Hillary Clinton used the word "assassination" today when explaining why she should stay in the race when there is no way she can win the nomination. As a Barack Obama supporter I have had the thought of this tragic potential in my mind. In the back of my mind is the fear that Barack Obama has a chance of being assassinated, but I don't say it outloud often. I mentioned it only two times over the last several months, but only to people who are supporters of Barack. Fear never has dictated my behavior, so fear hasn't dictated my wishes and actions in this Presidential campaign.

Enter Hillary Clinton. Today, is not the first use of the word "assassination" by Hillary Clinton in this campaign. It doesn't seem to be an idea she fears, but it gives her hope. How does Hillary put this utterance back in the bottle? What a screw up.

The media coverage that I have seen of this has been way too forgiving to Hillary. She doesn't even get it. The mere mention of the word "assassination" is abominable. It puts it out there in the universe. Hillary didn't say the word "assassination" and then follow it up with "God, forbid" she just used it for her purpose to support herself. What shreds of neutrality I had left for her have gone.

I think the fact that Barack Obama had to have federal secret security service detail earlier than other candidates ever have in the course of a campaign indicates there were reasons to merit it. And the stepped up security measures made at his speech in Rhode Island over the one I previously attended in New Hampshire, indicated that his life has been threatened in this campaign. Barack and Michelle Obama haven't talked about it, but I believe it has happened. But it hasn't stopped Barack from his intention to carry on. And we should not be waiting for it to happen as apparently Hillary is.

Hillary Clinton is a narcissist. She has proven she will do anything to win. She said nothing in her response of "not intending to offend" to Barack Obama. She has been hoping that something would happen to Barack Obama so that she would be the Democratic nomination. Now we have it on video.

Hillary Clinton is supposed to be the "experience" candidate. She has shown she is a racist over and over thoughout this campaign. Today, she has shown no empathy, no sensitivity and poor judgment.

Hillary Clinton is not fit to be President.

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Discussion about Hillary Clinton and her use of the word "Assassination" as a part of her rationale to have hope to win the Democratic nomination for President of the USA

Assassinations in the USA in the sixties
Just three assassinations listed in the sixties

Barack Obama and the Results Center

SLEAZY CANDIDATE, SLEAZY CONSULTANTS

HILLARY CLINTON IS NOT FIT TO REPLACE GEORGE W BUSH

TRUTH is NOT a TOY

Definition
sleazy

Sordid in character
Dishonest or immoral
Contemptibly low, mean or disreptutable sleazy politics

1. Senator Clinton is campaigning for John McCain. She stated today that only she and John McCain have “experience” and all Barack Obama has is one speech. Is this showing us her outstanding leadership experience, integrity and good judgment? This is hurtful to the Democratic Party...the one she belongs to.

2. Senator Clinton is and she hires people, who are dishonest and contemptible. For example, The Clinton rhetorical "hit" people of Mark Penn, Howard Wolfson.
Howard Wolfson today likened Barack Obama to Ken Starr. Links about Ken Starr
Knowledge about Ken Starr
Kenneth Starr Wikipedia
and the internal Clinton problems ~ not an example of experience helping Hillary Clinton:
Finger-pointing, frustration in Clinton camp

The Clinton consultants have likened Barack Obama to Karl Rove, George Bush and Ken Starr.
Clinton aide likens Obama to Ken Starr
Thu Mar 6, 2008
By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent

WASHINGTON, March 6 (Reuters) - An aide to Hillary Clinton likened Democratic presidential rival Barack Obama to independent prosecutor Ken Starr on Thursday, comparing criticism of her to the 1998 probe that led to President Bill Clinton's impeachment.

Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson criticized Obama's promise to take a more aggressive stance with the New York senator after she won three of four states on Tuesday in their hard-fought battle for the Democratic nomination to face Republican John McCain in November's election.

"I for one do not believe that imitating Ken Starr is the way to win a Democratic primary election for president, but perhaps that theory will be tested," Wolfson told reporters.

Starr was the independent prosecutor who led the investigation of Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton's husband, in a 1998 controversy that led to his impeachment on perjury and obstruction of justice charges by the House of Representatives and his subsequent acquittal in a Senate trial.

Starr's probe, which focused on Clinton's denials under oath about his sexual relations with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, came under heavy attack at the time from Democrats who called it politically motivated. Source: Reuters

If there weren’t an important national election in the balance, this would be laughable.

3. Hillary Clinton is a narcissist, that means, characterized by extreme self-centeredness and self-absorption, and disturbed interpersonal relationships. She made statements today that are not in the best interest of honest voters, the Democratic Party or the country.

a. Today, stated that Florida and Michigan could choose anyway that their states saw fit to have delegates from an election.

b. Today, stated that Florida should not have a reelection, but should seat the delegates from the rule-breaker election already done. The reason this is unjust is that many people most likely stayed home and didn’t vote because they had been informed that the DNC would not accept the votes.

This is a contradiction by Hillary Clinton.

4. Canada and NAFTA ~ Hillary once again LIES, turns the story against Barack Obama when it was HER who was the one who did it. There’s a concept…do something wrong and say your opponent did it.
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“A storm of reports in the Canadian media say that the Nafta-gate flap last week involving Barack Obama was started by a key aide to Canada's prime minister - who told journalists that Hillary Clinton's campaign - not Obama's - had contacted the Canadian government to play down its Nafta-bashing…”
Source: The Guardian of Great Britain

Article:
PM's (Canadian Prime Minister's) top aide set off storm with Obama NAFTA leak

CAMPBELL CLARK

March 6, 2008

OTTAWA -- The leak of a confidential diplomatic discussion that rocked the U.S. presidential campaign began with an offhand remark to journalists from the Prime Minister's chief of staff, Ian Brodie.

(Canada’s) Prime Minister Stephen Harper vowed yesterday to use whatever investigative means necessary to find the source of leaks that, he said, were "unfair" to U.S. Democratic candidate Barack Obama and may have been illegal - although opposition leaders insisted the Conservatives cannot be trusted to investigate political players on their own team.

But the story that reverberated through the U.S. presidential campaign began as a terse, almost throwaway remark that Mr. Brodie made to journalists from CTV, according to people familiar with the events.

Mr. Brodie, during the media lockup for the Feb. 26 budget, stopped to chat with several journalists, and was surrounded by a group from CTV.

The conversation turned to the pledges to renegotiate the North American free-trade agreement made by the two Democratic contenders, Mr. Obama and New York Senator Hillary Clinton.

Mr. Brodie, apparently seeking to play down the potential impact on Canada, told the reporters the threat was not serious, and that someone from Ms. Clinton's campaign had even contacted Canadian diplomats to tell them not to worry because the NAFTA threats were mostly political posturing.

The Canadian Press cited an unnamed source last night as saying that several people overheard the remark.

The news agency quoted that source as saying that Mr. Brodie said that someone from Ms. Clinton's campaign called and was "telling the embassy to take it with a grain of salt."

The story was followed by CTV's Washington bureau chief, Tom Clark, who reported that the Obama campaign, not the Clinton's, had reassured Canadian diplomats.

Mr. Clark cited unnamed Canadian sources in his initial report.

There was no explanation last night for why Mr. Brodie was said to have referred to the Clinton campaign but the news report was about the Obama campaign. CTV president Robert Hurst declined to comment.

The Prime Minister's communications director, Sandra Buckler, has said that Mr. Brodie "does not recall" discussing the issue.

…Although Mr. Harper has for days brushed aside allegations that his government interfered in the U.S. presidential campaign, yesterday he promised to "get to the bottom" of the matter and said laws may have been broken.

"It is not in the interest of the Government of Canada, and the way the leak was executed, Mr. Speaker, was blatantly unfair to Senator Obama and his campaign," the Prime Minister said in the Commons. Read more

Check the facts

Providence, Rhode Island Obama Office

OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT

ARE WE NUTS? COUNTING ON OUR VICES TO KEEP US HEALTHY AND ALIVE

FUNDING HEALTH CARE WITH CIGARETTES

Insurance Companies are not a part of “We the People”. They should not have a seat at the table to determine how the congress or the President should deal with our people’s health care. They are in business to make money from our health insurance premiums. They don’t care if we get health care coverage. They care about how much money they can make.

I’ve always wondered about how we try to fund programs on such things as our vices. For example, the targeted and specific taxes placed on packs of cigarettes for various things. The fact that we would fund health care with taxes on cigarettes is obscene, amoral and lacking intelligence. Can we think beyond short-term funding? Can we project into the future and what is sensible? Sometimes we get what we pay for. In this case, using cigarette taxes to pay for good programs is just plain mindless.

What if people stop smoking? Then, who will pay for our health care? How will we pay for the other things that are paid for with cigarette taxes already? What if we continue to set ourselves up to count on people to smoke? As the funding needs increase, it will be necessary to want the number to increase of smokers. This is ridiculous, don’t you think? To count on our vices to keep us healthy and alive? Sounds like sick-thinking to me.

Watch the "related" movie clip on the site that you can go directly to by hovering over my post title.

JOHN CONYERS of Michigan has a bill that needs the support of “We The People”. The following is taken from his web page.

H. R. 676, “The United States National Health Insurance Act,”
Or “Expanded & Improved Medicare For All”

"Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

In 2003, Representative Conyers first introduced HR 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act (USNHI). This bill would establish a unique American universal health insurance program with single payer financing. As a publicly financed, privately delivered health care system that improves and expands the already existing Medicare program, it would be available to all U.S. residents, and all residents living in U.S. territories.

The goal of the legislation is to ensure that all Americans will have access, guaranteed by law, to the highest quality and most cost effective health care services regardless of their employment, income or health care status. They would receive all medically necessary primary care, dental, mental health, prescription drugs, and long term care services by the physician of their choice, with no restrictions on what providers they could visit. With 47 million uninsured Americans, and another 50 million who are underinsured, the time has come to change our inefficient and costly fragmented non-system of health care. The end of John Conyers web page excerpt. From the link:
http://www.house.gov/conyers/news_hr676.htm

Is children's health care funding all smoke?

By Justin Thompson

(AXcess News) Washington - When Sen. Jim Bunning, R-KY., spoke on the Senate floor Thursday, it came as no surprise that he argued against expanding the State Children's Health Insurance Program, as did many of his Republican colleagues.

But Bunning, the two-term senator from the Bluegrass State, objected to more than just the idea of a "government-run health care system."

He has a problem with the bill's funding: namely a proposed 61 cent increase in federal taxes on tobacco products.

"The tobacco tax funding mechanism is an irresponsible way to pay for children's health care," he said. "The increased tax is fundamentally unfair to my state and the surrounding states."

But the government should worry about more than just the bill's equity. Raising the federal excise tax, he said, would drive away the source of the program's funding by pressing Americans to quit smoking.

The American Cancer Society estimates that for every 10 cent rise in the tobacco tax, 4 percent of smokers over 18 quit.

"If we were honest, and truly wanted to fully fund SCHIP spending with a tobacco tax, the federal government would have to encourage people to smoke," he said…
From the link:
http://axcessnews.com/index.php/articles/show/id/12555

Sicko - the movie's web page:
http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/dvd/
Sicko is out on DVD. I know there are people who simply won't watch this movie because they don't like Michael Moore. I like him. Some people like Bush. I don't. It seems that people who like Bush don't like Michael Moore.