Artists for Obama

Sharing my notebook

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:13:01 EST

"Hospice supports the best possible care to assist patients live as comfortably as possible, for as long as possible. Moreover, Hospice does not promote euthanasia, nor engage in physician assisted suicide. Hospice promotes a patient right to choice about all end of life care decisions."

Sharing my notebook

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:09:05 EST

"Misunderstanding - Hospice is Depressing.

Fact - The two most common fears of people facing the ending of life are suffering and abandonment. Hospice primary goal is to evaluate each individual's cause of suffering.

Moreover - Hospice is a community of professional as well as volunteer experts, that are trained to bring the latest medical and most humanistic care to each patient.

Hospice embraces the patient, the family, and the community in an effort to support an individual's quality of life and end of life decision making.

Hospice makes a difference in the quality of life and the quality of death."

Sharing my notebooks with you'll

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:01:05 EST

Common misunderstandings about Hospice care.

"Misunderstanding - hospice is a place where people go to die.

Fact - Hospice is both a philosophy of care and a program of service delivery.

Hospice can be implemented wherever a patient is - at home - in a nursing home - in a hospital,

Hospice is also a comprehensive continuum of care involving home care and inpatient care provided through an interdisciplinary team."

You all see Why Health Care and Wellness is So Important.

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 19:33:34 EST

Health care is the most important part of any individual, for we all get sick at times and we all grow older etc... and without health care small illness can become a big problem and can even mean death. So in my opinion Health care is more important then money. You can have all the money in the world but richness will not prevent you from catching sickness specially a lot of rich people catch cancer from over eating at fancy restaurants. Moreover Health care can mean the difference between life and death, between having a long life and not. etc....

So, I think what the President is trying to do about health care for all is very wise. Our President is a smart caring person.

sincerely

Yb-lem

New Obama Group Forming 'AmericaNOchange'

Al Boek — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 10:42:29 EST

Fellow President Obama Supporters and Former Ones"

AS the founder of the Obama Group named YESWECANSOLVEIT...

I have taken the liberty of forming still another group called

AmericaNOchange. I doubt this one gets approved.

Thought I'd better hurry and write this and send it to all groups that

I am still a member of before I am banned here forever. Why would

that happen? you ask. Because I just formed a new group with a little

kid yelling "Hey You" while flipping off the viewer. Hope the president

and his staff gets the message.

The esculation of the war in Aftganistan is the last straw. Three strikes

your out!

First, he keeps the same people on the payroll that got us into this

financial disaster. He let's Bush and Cheney walk scot-free. He continues

to bail out the banks, "all too big to fail" why they screw us in every way.

And tonight on national tv he will try to convience us all that the way to

end the war in Aftganistan is to exculate it. This did not work in Vietnam,

I know, because I volunteered to go there, and it will not work in Aftganistan.

To add insult to injury. The powers that be, the ones backing McCain in

my city in Northern California, are all meeting to determine what the same

good ole boys get to do with local stimulus funds...So my question is?

WHAT THE HELL HAS CHANGED IN AMERICAN PRESIDENT OBAMA?

I am so damned mad right now, I swear, if I could afford it, I'd trade in

my next presidential ballot for a passport.

Al Boek, Ex-Supporter of a One-Term President

earlallenboek@yahoo.com

530-549-4315

Redding, California

What I Believe

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 19:07:43 EST

I am the living breathing temple of God, I do not need to have a temple of wood and stone for my heart is my temple and my church is my community and my mission to God is helping others and serving others unconditionally, and yes, if someone ask me to visit them and explain my ancient beliefs I gladly do and tell them about yoga exercises and yoga breathing for relaxation and may be sale a book or two for little profit for I am an entreprenuer and I enjoy sharing wisdom, but usually all or must of what I do I do, it for free unconditionally with the main purpose of helping others.

JOB BANK

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 12:58:59 EST

INSTEAD OF SPENDING ALL OF OUR TIME LOOKING AT THE UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS, WE NEED TO HELP ONE ANOTHER. PLEASE SCOUT OUT JOBS IN YOUR AREA AND POST IT HERE. WE WILL DO THE SAME. PLEASE FIND OUT WHAT IS THE AMOUNT OF PAY, CONTACT NAME AND NUMBER. PEOPLE ARE WILLING TO GO OUT OF STATE IF NECESSARY. THANKS FOR BEING A PART OF THE SOLUTION.

SHARING JOB OPPORTUNITIES WITH THE COMMUNITY!

THE BUSINESS SERVICES GROUP

ONE TEAM ONE GOAL: MARKETING TO THE COMMUNITY

On behalf of the D.C. Department of Employment Services - Business
Services Group (BSG) we would appreciate your assistance in posting and
sharing with members of your community. Visit DOES Virtual OneStop (VOS)
website address: www.dcnetworks. org <http://www.dcnetworks.org/> to
obtain web information for employers, and job seekers on career
opportunities, training, education, testing, assessment, and other
career tools. AMTRAK Railways is the employer.

*In order to be considered for this position you must post your resume
online at www.dcnetworks. org <http://www.dcnetwor ks.org/> see job
order number 68730 for more details.

SCO Family of Services Career Opportunities

SCO always has openings for child care workers some per diem some permanant they also hire LPN's. Website is: www.sco.org See below for more information on additional openings employment details and how to apply

SCO Family of Services has been caring for New York’s most vulnerable children and families for more than a century. Each year, we touch the lives of more than 30,000 people at 122 locations throughout New York City and Long Island.

Career opportunities are often available throughout New York City and Long Island for qualified applicants. To apply for a position below, please contact the hiring manager noted on the posting. For emails, please specify the position you are applying for in the subject line.

Date PostedLocationPositionJune 2009QueensCoping Skills SpecialistJune 2009BrooklynFamily CounselorsJune 2009BrooklynHealth Care IntegratorJune 2009QueensQuality Improvement SpecialistJune 2009NassauQuality Improvement SpecialistAugust 2009SuffolkCaseworkerAugust 2009QueensCase Planner F/T August 2009BrooklynHome Visitor F/TSeptember 2009SuffolkCSE Chairperson/ Educational EvaluatorSeptember 2009BrooklynFamily Team Conference FacilitatorSeptember 2009SuffolkPsychologist

All other job inquiries can be sent to:

Recruitment Coordinator
Human Resources Department
SCO Family of Services
1 Alexander Place
Glen Cove, NY 11542
Email: Careers@sco.org
Fax: 516.609.9217

SCO Family of Services is an equal opportunity employer and considers all applicants for all positions without regard to race, creed, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship status, veteran status or any other legally protected status.

Qualified applicants will sometimes require a valid NYS Drivers License.

Computer Skills and/or Bilingual English/Spanish proficiency a plus.

Comprehensive Benefits are available to both regular full-time and regular part-time* staff:

Health and Dental** Insurance
Group Term Life Insurance
403B Plan
Pension Plan
Voluntary Short/Long Term Disability
Flex Spending for Mass Transit/Parking/Dependant Care
Tuition Reimbursement
Credit Union
Up to 24 Vacation days per year
12 Paid Holidays per year
12 Paid Sick Days per year

Happy Thanksgiven day President Obama and Family from all of us in Richmond Hill.

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:40:59 EST

Happy Thanksgiven Holiday my President Barack Obama to you and to the First lady and to your precious little girls from me and my ill health husband John Mike and our family and my daughters Elizabeth and Melbicita and from my son Cesitar and from my hopefuly future son in law Blanco and from my mom Melby B. Montalvo and my dad Rev. Walter Montalvo and from my spiritual didi Taramati Sukhdeo and from all our family and friends - you are doing a great Job Keep up the good work Big Brother Barack, we all love you and your family, may God Bless you and keep up the good work.

God Bless you always.

Your Humble friend and servant always

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Oskowitz aka Mary.

Notes of My DiDi (Spiritual Sister) Taramati and Me Yb-lem Sharing Wisdom for the New Generation and with the purpose of Preserving the Ancient Culture.

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 19:49:09 EST

The Spiritual Children Say Namaste to God the Father of all Souls and God Say Namaste to the spiritual children.

Remember always that - The Gita and all scriptures, they all belong to the path of Devotion.

Eventhough we know the drama Bhagwan (God) will enable us to make efforts and change for the better. So don't become tired of making efforts. The lord protects Dharma, and destroys unrighteousness. Bhagwan is knowledge full and Blissful.

Bhagwan is full of all treasures, but He Himself does not become the Master of the Treasures, but instead He makes us the children of His Wealth.

Within a brief moment of time

i am rasa — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:22:15 EST

Within a brief moment of time

I have been focusing on the greatest journey of my life.

That most amazing miraculous dream of one tiny little sperm carrying the worlds most heaviest load, the genetic information of generations and generations and generations....in order to enter into the dream world of a small egg awaiting for that wondrous moment to arrive. The greatest journey of my life. The greatest journey of my life, happening throughout the ages.

Here i am, the dream of a tiny minuscule sperm who has touched, entered and combined into the amazing dream of an egg. Generations of dreams combining in ONE brief moment of time. Two different distinctive dreams combining everything together to co-create a dream dreaming.

Within that brief small moment of synchronization of time and space. The combined wholeness of my dream was unified. Then began the second most amazing adventure of my life. From one miraculous cell to 100 trillion cells playing and dancing in a unified field of utopian nature.

Then from being focused inside the womb to looking outward to this.

We are all energy. Within a brief moment of time. The possibility of combining and integrating our individual unique miraculous creative genius energy TOGETHER to realize a totally new dream coming from the heart of reality seems so simple so easy.

The Mass Group. E=MC2. Peace, love, freedom...pelodom.

Within a brief moment of time is our ability to integrate our consciousness to form an amazing new creative dream unfolding. Within the empty space is the ability to integrate ALL our dreams simultaneously. By coming to the O table, by giving freely of our geniusness, our dreams shared, our consciousness expands. Our reality expands. Abundance is the dance.

Within a brief moment of time, creation of a new life.. a new dream is owakened.

Dream Big Dreams

The Way I See It.

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:53:37 EST

It is true that this are hard economical times, but I believe that the country is doing a bit better than last year. There is so much that still needs to be done but 2008 was much worst than now, for instance, there was more unemployment and layoff and or companies going bankrupt and out of bussiness, now at least things are a little better, true not much better like everyone would like it to be but there is much hope, and with hard work and continues effort everyone goals can be reach, and yes there is much hope.

Thank You President Obama for Caring

and for all your words of encoragement and wisdom.

Sincerely,

Your Humble friend

Yb-lem

Yea!!! My Mayor Bloomber Won - There is Hope!

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:18:42 EST

I thank God that Mayor Bloomber Won, I believe in Mayor Bloomber, and I have Hope that I will get a 9-5 Job with decent pay as a Social Worker or Teacher which is what my heart desires. So, that I can afford to pay back the over 20000 dollars I owed higher education. All I want is a decent job for a college graduate like my self with decent pay, thats all.

God Bless

Yb-lem aka Mary.

Polling Point.COM

Suffolk.New York.Can — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:50:07 EDT

If you want to be proactive instead of reactive, please take these polls daily. They affect your future. Multiple topics, Incuding Limbaugh. POLLING POINT.COM

ANOTHER POLL FOR NEW YORKERS

Suffolk.New York.Can — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 13:44:45 EDT

Please check TOPIX.COM AND WRITE COMMENTS OR ANSWER SURVEYS.

Healthcare March on Washington

Joseph — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 11:33:42 EDT

We need healthcare reform in order to prevent the continuing spread of the vicious infection of personal and corporate bankruptcies linked to radically escalating healthcare costs, which are coinciding with a worsening deterioration in quality of coverage and quality of care. We need reform to make healthcare coverage affordable, reasonable, and undeniable. We need reform to save tens of thousands of lives per year and establish a sustainable long-term economic path, to help protect the market system and make protecting and sustaining life more cost-effective, liberating people to live the lives they dream they can.

We are watching a massive, nationwide movement of propaganda and mobilization spread one after another wild fabrication and spur sometimes violent anger about the most promising healthcare reform proposals our nation has seen. It is intolerable to stand by and watch this campaign of malicious fear-mongering sow hate and anger and derail reform in order to serve the morally bankrupt political strategy of those who want to "kill reform" for their own electoral gain.

We need to organize not just at the local level, but we need to organize nationally, set a date for a massive demonstration of support in Washington, DC, and march on Washington. The demonstration should be set for early October and we need to spend big to get the message out and treat this cause like a second inauguration. We stood in the freezing cold to support Pres. Obama and his message of transformative change, and now we have to do the same, in the midst of this firestorm of distortions and tempers, to show the true grassroots movement demanding a response is pro-reform.

Let's get moving on setting the date for a march. We can launch a group on this website and use it to plan and to mobilize support.

Shiva is one of The many Names Of God.

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:23:18 EDT

Shiva is one of the many many names of God.

Shiva is a Sankrist word meaning =World Benefactor

And the World Benefactor is no other than God the father of all the souls and of all humanity.

So, Shiva=World Benefactor = God.

Senator Feinstein of California does not support Public Option

Melanie — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 12:31:30 EDT

Please, all Californians, call Senator Dianne Feinstein and ask her to support public option. I got this from her website when I was directed by one of her staff on her beliefs about President Obama's Healthcare Reform. Please call her. Thanks, Melanie

What I Support : Senator Dianne Feinstein
I basically believe that reform should be incremental and should cover the following:

Allow people to keep their current healthcare coverage. Millions of Americans have insurance that meets their needs. In all of the proposals that Congress is considering, those happy with their current plan will be able to keep it.
Stop certain practices of insurance companies. Any bill should end discrimination based on preexisting conditions, stop insurance companies from dropping insurance when people become sick, and prevent the unreasonable denial of treatment. There must also be limits to out-of-pocket expenses to ensure that Americans are not driven into financial ruin by illness.
Control insurance premiums. Insurance premiums have doubled over the last 9 years, 3 times faster than wages. Meanwhile, the profits of the nation’s largest private insurance companies increased 428 percent from 2000 to 2008 (Health Care for America NOW). This is unacceptable. Insurance for healthcare is an urgent and universal need, but will not be sustainable and universal if the profit margin remains unconstrained.

In order to see that premiums are affordable, I believe that all non-direct healthcare costs (advertising, overhead, profits, and other administrative costs) should be limited and not exceed 10 percent. All premium rate adjustments should be subject to review and approval by a Health Insurance Rate Authority. Bottom line: your health insurance must remain affordable. Your premiums cannot be allowed to double again in the next nine years, as they have in the past nine.

Another way of stabilizing premium affordability is the public option. Depending how the competition is structured, this “option” could compel insurance companies to lower premiums to remain competitive. It remains a viable proposal. The public option should be one of a variety of choices for people who want improved coverage, giving them an option between a private insurance plan and a public one. The public option is simply that—an option. No one will be required to enroll in the public plan. Instead, it would offer consumers an additional choice as they select a health insurance policy. Instead of choosing between policies offered only by private insurance companies, people could choose to buy a public insurance plan. Those that prefer to buy private insurance could still do so.

The purpose of creating a public plan is to increase competition so that premium costs can be controlled. It is very clear that in the current market, private insurance companies do not control the price of premiums. The public option will not replace anyone’s private insurance coverage, but it could prevent future premium increases as private insurance companies lower their prices to compete with a public option. I am also open to considering a non-profit co-operative model, as long as it can accomplish the critical goal of controlling premium costs and spurring competition. Because insurance company profit taking has been so high, it will be very difficult to control premium costs without some non-profit option.

Save and improve Medicare. Medicare presents us with a looming and serious problem. In eight years, 2017, it will begin to run out of money. The cost of Medicare has more than doubled over the last decade, growing from $210.4 billion in 1997 to $431.2 billion in 2007. These rising costs are unsustainable, and they contribute to the burgeoning cost of entitlements.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, 56 percent of all dollars that the federal government is projected to spend in 2009 will be spent on entitlements (Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, Veterans’ benefits). If you add interest on the debt, which will account for 5 percent of this year’s federal spending, 61 percent of everything the government spends cannot be controlled. That is because if you qualify for an entitlement, you receive it, regardless of cost. And the interest on the debt must be paid, which further jeopardizes the financial future of the county as the debt grows. Any health reform bill must revise and reform Medicare to eliminate duplication and waste, and to prevent this continuing cost explosion. I cannot vote for a bill that will add a new entitlement, like a subsidy, that will grow over time.

One way of accomplishing Medicare reform is to create an Entitlement Commission to reform and control Medicare and Social Security. This Commission would retain independent actuaries to periodically and regularly review the system and periodically make recommendations to the Congress, which would vote them up or down.

Expand healthcare coverage. With over 20 percent of Californians uninsured, healthcare reform must expand coverage to those who cannot currently afford it. Any expansion of coverage must be sustainable in the long-term, and be affordable without requiring adding costs to California and its counties, and without becoming another entitlement. This is difficult to do, and it remains to be seen how it will be accomplished.
Make prescription drugs more affordable for public hospitals and clinics. Currently, hospitals like San Francisco General Hospital and Harbor/ UCLA, as well as Federally Qualified Community Health Centers, are able to purchase some prescription drugs at a discounted price. However, these discounts apply only for prescription drugs used in outpatient care. This discount program should be expanded to cover drugs used for inpatient hospital care, and other facilities, like mental health clinics. This would allow healthcare providers to give patients more affordable access to the prescription medications that they need.
Health reform should include tort reform. I believe that medical malpractice reform must be included in health reform. Reforming medical malpractice in the correct manner can lower costs in the system, while still ensuring that injured parties are compensated fairly. The rapid escalation in health care spending is driven in part by defensive medicine. We can create incentives for doctors to provide efficient, high quality health care, but these efforts will not bear fruit if physicians feel compelled to order extra tests, images and procedures to protect themselves should there be a lawsuit.
Health reform should not address end of life care. I feel strongly that anything relating to end of life care does not belong in the bill. These are private family matters that do not require legislation.

Healthcare Reform “Musts”

Healthcare reform must contain and lower costs long-term. Any system that is created must be sustainable in both the short and long-term. I agree with President Obama that healthcare reform must not add to the federal deficit, and it must control the increase in healthcare spending in the long-term. It will do our Nation no good to expand coverage in the short-term, only to realize we cannot afford the policies we have adopted. So, the cost curve must not just go down for the initial period but be sustainable over time in the out years.
Healthcare reform must protect public hospitals, community clinics and county programs. Public hospitals, community clinics, and other county programs contribute substantially to healthcare across California. The Finance Committee is considering large cuts in payments (called Disproportionate Share Hospital payments, or DSH). As a former mayor, major cuts to public hospitals are unacceptable to me.

These payments are vital to the survival of publicly owned hospitals like San Francisco General Hospital, UCLA/Harbor Medical Center and UC San Diego Medical Center to cover the costs of providing care for the uninsured and undocumented. Many counties, including Los Angeles County, Riverside and San Francisco, are concerned that these payments will be reduced as a cost saving mechanism in the bill, and result in additional County costs. In California, these cuts could be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

Healthcare reform must not create new financial burdens for the state or counties. California has been hard hit by the economic downturn and has sustained a systemic imbalance in its budget, which I anticipate will continue for the next year or so. Therefore, health reform must not add obligations that the state will be unable to pay.

If extending health care to the millions of currently uninsured is achieved by expanding Medicaid, the new cost to California would be approximately $2.05 billion per year, if the new eligibility level is set at 133 percent of the Federal Poverty Level ($14,404 per individual). Many California counties contribute to the cost of Medicaid, and they do not have extra funding to pay the cost for a program expansion. California still faces an ongoing financial emergency, so this becomes an important consideration. I could not support a bill that pushes additional costs on California state government or its counties.

Healthcare coverage must be truly affordable. Healthcare reform must also meet the needs of those living in high cost states like California. If individuals are required to purchase coverage, this coverage must not require them to spend a high percentage of their income. For example, I am led to believe that the bill under discussion could consider any health insurance plan to be affordable if it costs less than 15 percent of a family’s annual income. For a single parent of two children in California earning $55,000 per year, this could mean spending as much as $8,250 on health insurance premiums—with no additional help from the government. With the high cost of living in California, this could be very difficult for many families.

These concerns and others that develop must be addressed in the Finance Committee bill. I will amend and change this paper as I learn more about the actual bill likely to come before the Senate. I thank you for reading this. Be assured that I want practical health reform to pass, but believe that the package must control the escalating cost of health insurance, increase coverage for those who do not have it, and contain costs.

Thank you,

Dianne Feinstein

March for Healthcare

Joe Brothers — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 23:51:53 EDT

Minnesota's March for Healthcare - in conjuction with the nationwide movement of marches on Sunday, September 13 to demand real healthcare reform.

In cooperation with TakeActionMN

Sunday, September 13, 2009 at 12 noon

Phillips Park

1530 E. Franklin Ave.

Minneapolis, MN

Speakers:

Congressman Keith Ellison

John Marty, State Senator and Candidate for Governor

Reverend Grant Stevenson

Erin Murphy, State Representative

For more information visit www.march4healthcare.com

email: mnhealthcarereform@gmail.com

[This event is not sponsored or affiliated with Organizing for America. It is a truly grassroots action at its most powerful! and finest!]

DREAM BIG DREAMS

i am rasa — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 13:16:09 EDT

WE came to Washington DC for http://chalkthewhitehouse.com, to celebrate the Presidents Birthday and to express our individual unique miraculous creative genius with the President in forming a more perfect union. The participants in this years events are planning on amazing things for celebrating 2010. We learned so much this trip. Thank YOU ALL for participating.

Makiah was hoping to realize his "Dream BIG Dreams" of playing some basketball hoops on the White House Basketball Court but was threatened by the secret service to have him talken away by child custody and have his father experience some very very unpleasant times. Still totally puzzeled how a ten year old special needs boy who adores the secret service can be a threat to them or anyone.... or me, who claims to be one of the most peaceful experts on peace on the planet...interesting learning experiences.

I am currnetly working on the book "dream big dreams" the summation of our celebrational journey to DC and the first annual ChalkTheWhiteHouse event. WE learned alot about national archetypes concerning the male and female counterparts ..thank you Mary Mother of God and all things Michelle Obama. We are looking forward to being SIM orchestrators with the Institue of Peace. Balancing all aspects of forming a more perfect union with "happy hands, happy feet, happy heart...happyplanetindex.org" ....WE feel that the simple easy educational and health shifts of experiencing the ultimate health of oneself is here and now...an integral part of our history and future coming together to cross paths on that most rewarding road of being oneself.

Hoping to share more with everyone when the book "Dream Big Dreams" is completed. Until then giving all your focus and support to Michelle Obama in all she does for the ultimate goal of THE CHILDREN is absolutely appreciated by ALL of us who are "Dreaming Big Dreams" .....

Health Reform -What A Wonderful Thing- Go President Obama!!! Bravo, Bravo!!!

Rev. Dr. Yb-lem Cueva Oskowitz — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:24:31 EDT

You are doing a Wonderful Job, for Health Care my President Obama We all are Proud of You, Thank You Very Much for Caring

Your Humble Friend

Mary

Yb-lem Oskowitz aka Mary

God Bless You Always.

2009 Medal of Freedom Recipients

EsquireUK — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:40:10 EDT

THURSDAY, JULY 30TH,

2009 Medal of Freedom Recipients

Posted by Katherine Brandon

The President announced today the 16 recipients of the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom, America’s highest civilan honor. The President praised the recipients for breaking down barriers and lifting up their fellow citizens: "These outstanding men and women represent an incredible diversity of backgrounds. Their tremendous accomplishments span fields from science to sports, from fine arts to foreign affairs. Yet they share one overarching trait: Each has been an agent of change. Each saw an imperfect world and set about improving it, often overcoming great obstacles along the way."The awards will be presented on August 12. Here is a little bit about this year’s recipients:

Nancy Goodman Brinker is the founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the world’s leading breast cancer grassroots organization.
Pedro José Greer, Jr. is the Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs and Florida International University School of Medicine. He is also the founder of Camillus Health Concern, an agency that provides medical care to over 10,000 homeless and low-income patients each year in Miami.
Stephen Hawking is an internationally-recognized theoretical physicist, and is the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University.
Jack Kemp was a U.S. Congressman, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and Republican Nominee for Vice President in 1996. He died in May, 2009
Sen. Edward Kennedy is one of the longest-serving and greatest Senators of all time. He has worked tirelessly for health care reform over the last five decades.
Billie Jean King is known for winning the famous "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match, and championing gender equality issues not only in sports, but in all aspects of life.
Rev. Joseph Lowery has been a leader of the civil rights movement since the 1950s, and co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Dr. Martin Luther King.
Dr. Joseph Medicine Crow is the last living Plains Indian war chief, and author of works on Native American history and culture who has served as an inspiration to young Native Americans across the country.
Harvey Milk was the first openly gay elected official from a major city in the United States. He was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977, and encouraged LGBT citizens to live their lives openly.
Sandra Day O’Connor was a Supreme Court Justice from 1981 until her retirement in 2006. She was the first woman ever to sit on the Supreme Court, and has received numerous awards for her outstanding achievements.
Sidney Poitier is an actor known for breaking racial barriers. He is the first African American to be nominated and win a Best Actor Academy Award.
Chita Rivera is an actress, singer and dancer, who has broken barriers and inspired a generation of women. In 2002, she was the first Hispanic to receive the Kennedy Center Honor.
Mary Robinson was the first female President of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Since 2002, she has been the President of Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative.
Janet Davison Rowley, M.D., is the Blum Riese Distinguished Service Professor of Medicine, Molecular Genetics & Cell Biology and Human Genetics at the University of Chicago. She discovered the first consistent chromosome translocation in a human cancer.
Desmond Tutu is widely regarded as "South Africa’s moral conscience," and was a leading anti-apartheid activist in South Africa.
Muhammad Yunus is a global leader in anti-poverty efforts, and pioneered the use of "micro-loans" to provide credit to poor individuals.

See the official release for a little more detail.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2009-Medal-of-Freedom-Recipients/

Familiar Players in Health Bill Lobbying

Melanie — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 03:11:54 EDT

Familiar Players in Health Bill Lobbying
Firms Are Enlisting Ex-Lawmakers, Aides

By Dan Eggen and Kimberly Kindy
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, July 6, 2009

The nation's largest insurers, hospitals and medical groups have hired more than 350 former government staff members and retired members of Congress in hopes of influencing their old bosses and colleagues, according to an analysis of lobbying disclosures and other records.

The tactic is so widespread that three of every four major health-care firms have at least one former insider on their lobbying payrolls, according to The Washington Post's analysis.

Nearly half of the insiders previously worked for the key committees and lawmakers, including Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), debating whether to adopt a public insurance option opposed by major industry groups. At least 10 others have been members of Congress, such as former House majority leaders Richard K. Armey (R-Tex.) and Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.), both of whom represent a New Jersey pharmaceutical firm.

The hirings are part of a record-breaking influence campaign by the health-care industry, which is spending more than $1.4 million a day on lobbying in the current fight, according to disclosure records. And even in a city where lobbying is a part of life, the scale of the effort has drawn attention. For example, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) doubled its spending to nearly $7 million in the first quarter of 2009, followed by Pfizer, with more than $6 million.

The push has reunited many who worked together in government on health-care reform, but are now employed as advocates for pharmaceutical and insurance companies.

A June 10 meeting between aides to Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and health-care lobbyists included two former Baucus chiefs of staff: David Castagnetti, whose clients include PhRMA and America's Health Insurance Plans, and Jeffrey A. Forbes, who represents PhRMA, Amgen, Genentech, Merck and others. Castagnetti did not return a telephone call; Forbes declined to comment.

Also inside the closed committee hearing room that day was Richard Tarplin, a veteran of both the Department of Health and Human Services and the Senate, where he worked for Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), one of the leaders in fashioning reform legislation this year. Tarplin now represents the American Medical Association as head of his own lobbying firm, Tarplin Strategies.

"For people like me who are on the outside and used to be on the inside, this is great, because there is a level of trust in these relationships, and I know the policy rationale that is required," Tarplin said in explaining the benefits of having government experience.

But public interest groups and reform advocates complain that the concentration of former government aides on K Street has distorted the health-care debate, and that it further illustrates the problem posed by the "revolving door" between government and private firms.

"The revolving door offers a short cut to a member of Congress to the highest bidder," said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, which compiled some of the data used in The Post's analysis. "It's a small cost of doing business relative to the profits they can garner."

Aides to Baucus and other lawmakers bristle at any suggestion of special treatment for former staff members. Baucus spokesman Scott Mulhauser said the senator "remains committed to working with a variety of stakeholders" as the Finance Committee attempts to come up with a bill this summer.

"The senator and his staff meet daily with individuals, nonprofits and interests from across the health-care spectrum, and are proud that all interests are treated equally and that no one receives special treatment of any kind," Mulhauser said. "As a result, the Finance Committee has been praised by members of Congress and the media for its uniquely inclusive and transparent health-care reform process."

The Post examined federally required disclosure reports submitted by health-care firms that spent more than $100,000 lobbying in the first quarter of this year. It used current and past filings to identify former lawmakers, congressional staff members and executive branch officials.

The analysis identified more than 350 former government aides, each representing an average of four firms or trade groups. That tally does not include lobbyists who did not report their earlier government experience, such as PhRMA President W.J. "Billy" Tauzin, a former Republican congressman from Louisiana. Federal law does not require providing such detail.

Overall, health-care companies and their representatives spent more than $126 million on lobbying in the first quarter, leading all other industries, according to CRP and Senate data. PhRMA led the pack in spending and employs 49 former government staff members among its 136 lobbyists, according to The Post's analysis. Dozens of other former insiders are employed as lobbyists by Pfizer, Eli Lilly, the AMA and the American Hospital Association, each of which spent at least $3.5 million on lobbying from January through March.

The aim of the lobbying blitz is simple: to minimize the damage to insurers, hospitals and other major sectors while maximizing the potential of up to 46 million uninsured Americans as new customers. Although many firms have vowed to help cut costs, major players such as PhRMA, America's Health Insurance Plans and others remain opposed to the public-insurance option, a key proposal that President Obama has endorsed.

Several major Democratic bills include such a plan, but Baucus's committee -- which is acting as the central broker in the debate -- has not committed to the idea. Instead, the Finance Committee has focused recently on private-insurance cooperatives and other proposals seen as more palatable to the insurance industry and centrist Democrats. More than 50 former employees of the committee or its members lobby on behalf of the health-care industry, records show.

Deploying former government officials is a key strategy for pressing such positions on Capitol Hill, according to industry lobbyists, many of whom discussed the issue on the condition of anonymity. They say that legislative or administration experience helps ensure that policies considered by Congress do not imperil health-care interests, which account for about one-sixth of the U.S. economy.

At the same time, these lobbyists say, a personal connection to lawmakers and their staffs does not guarantee success.

"If anyone thinks hiring a former staffer for Baucus or [Charles] Schumer or Blanche Lincoln is going to get them what they want, they are crazy," said one health-care lobbyist who used to work on the Finance Committee, referring to several key Democratic senators. "If we were being judged on that, a lot of us should be fired."

William K. "Billy" Wynne, a former Baucus health counsel who now works for the Health Policy Source lobbying firm, said that "there's nothing insidious" about medical companies and groups hiring former legislative staff members. He also notes that he is subject to a two-year limit on contacts with Baucus's office.

"The technical processes of the House and Senate are not intuitive or widely known," Wynne said. "Like with any service, people who have experience are going to be valuable to people who don't."

Some trade groups and companies appear to emphasize hiring lobbyists with legislative or executive experience. Wellpoint, one of the world's largest insurance conglomerates, employs 11 lobbyists with government experience and three with none. One of its veterans is Stephen Northrup, who worked for several years for Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), including a year as his health policy director on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

"I think the experience on Capitol Hill gives you a better appreciation of the challenges that members and staff face," said Northrup, who began his Washington career as a lobbyist before entering government. "Every institution has its own rhythm. You need to understand when people need information."

The personal and professional ties between lawmakers, their staffs and lobbyists are often complex. Consider the case of Tarplin and his wife, Republican lobbyist Linda Tarplin. The two worked on opposite sides of the Family Medical Leave Act debate in the 1990s, and each has held high-ranking HHS positions -- he for Bill Clinton and she for George H.W. Bush.

Now they run their own health-care lobbying firms, drawing on their connections. Last year, Richard Tarplin's firm reported $650,000 in lobbying income and his wife's firm -- Tarplin, Downs and Young -- reported $3.5 million.

"We have been in situations that are much more combative than this," Linda Tarplin said of the health-care fight. "Both Democrats and Republicans want health-care reform. The rub has always been they tend to get there in different ways."

At least eight former HHS appointees have also crossed over into health-care lobbying, representing more than 25 companies with a stake in the reform legislation. Most were presidential appointees with high-ranking positions, such as the Tarplins.

A few have also cycled back into government. Jack Charles Ebeler, a former Clinton HHS official, left his job as president and chief executive of the Alliance of Community Health Plans a few months ago to become senior adviser for health policy on the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Financial disclosure statements show that Ebeler received consulting fees over the past two years from UnitedHealth Group, Academy Health, the Medicare Rights Center, the Center for Health Care Strategies and the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. Ebeler declined interview requests by The Post.

One of the most prominent examples of Washington's revolving door is Tauzin, who took the $2.5 million-a-year job as head of PhRMA in 2005 after shepherding a Medicare prescription drug plan through Congress.

Uproar over the appointment led Congress in 2007 to pass a bill barring former members from bringing clients onto the House and Senate floors and from lobbying their friends in members-only gyms. The legislation also forbade direct lobbying contacts with former colleagues for a year in the House and two years in the Senate; efforts to enact a wider ban went nowhere.

Tauzin and other lobbyists rebuff critics, arguing that it is unsurprising that those with experience on Capitol Hill should then draw on that background.

"Is it a distortion of baseball to hire coaches who have played baseball? Is it a distortion of universities to hire from academia?" Tauzin asked rhetorically. "The bottom line is that people work in the fields in which they have experience. Somehow there are people who think that's unusual for politics, but I think it's pretty normal."

Graphics editor Karen Yourish, database editor Sarah Cohen and research editor Alice Crites contributed to this repor

TOUCHSTONE OF THE BRIDGE OVER THE RIVER OF PROGRESSIVE PUBLIC MIND

theatre of life — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 21:05:02 EDT

TOUCHSTONE OF THE BRIDGE OVER THE RIVER OF PROGRESSIVE PUBLIC MIND

During the hearings before the Senate HELP Cmte. Senator Edward Kennedy asked the following Question:

“Million Dollar Question on the minds of all Americans. Its’s a simple one. How on the world are you going to get a health care reform?”

Self-consciousness of the health care reform would be a “causa sui in the cogito” being the cause of itself.

This central concept relating to the purpose that the Congress can assign events to engineer the human destiny and shape the debates in the immortality vessel for the American society and continue creating a meaning beyond its own life as a living constitution.

Wisdom of the Congress merged with the artificial intelligence will invoke intellectual backup of the debates and it will also encourage the brainstorming approach to litigation tasks. Institutions in authority to fulfill the job for the whole process will then not fail.

Making of a “Concept Map” of Universal Health care with accurate sentence diagram to support the “Mind Map” of the arguments radiating out from the central picture is undeniable task for the comprehensive understanding of the overall system.

In this specific domain it is necessary to transfer current system into a knowledge based Expert- system and apply the problem solving techniques of the experts into the artificial intelligence system.

Methodology supporting the development of such knowledge based system will be a guideline for the redesign of mental classification for the clear road map and the required technical expertise when proposing legislation and drafting if there’s a need to do technical corrections.

If the characteristics of the current system and the environment of this system is defined with the proper document management sytem, the information on oversight will be completed and systematic breakdowns will be avoided to prevent the entire system breakdown.

The United Nation’s World Health Organization defines health as “ a state of complete physical, mental and social well being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”

To my opinion the state has to be a systematic supervisor over the universal health care and over the competence management of the current health care providers and use its organizational capital in cooperation with their existing relational capital and human capital with knowledge and experience of health care residing in USA.

With the Universal Healthcare for all Americans in the system, the citizens will be freed from fear of the future and a classic American will have faith and confidence in the future. The nation will then be stronger with trust in Government.

It will reduce relevant risks of future cases of preemptive acts as the Federal citizens demand standards of healthcare in accordance with the state sovereignity. US competition will be better worldwide if the rights of the individuals for sufficient health care are protected within the borders.

Expert system on Universal Health care may not have learning components but once the system is developed its aim is to be placed in the same real world problem solving situation with segments and steps:

Step1: Analyze the current system as careful as pedibus usque ad caput

Step 2:A true American solution requires the change in the progressive mentality literally Mutatis mutandis because of the reality of Tempora mutantur, nos et mutamur in illis.

Step 3: Consider a ceteris paribus assumption as fundamental to the predictive purpose of scientific inquiry. Rule out the possibility of other factors which could override the relationship between the antecedent and the consequent which interfere with examining a specific causal relationship. Try to make sure that the value of only one variable is to be allowed to differ, when comparing the current situations with a multiplicity of common variables set at the same value of the proposed one "all other things being equal"— parametrize a statement with a new term and pay attention to the corresponding differences between the current statement and a previous

Step 4: describe the purpose of theory- modeling with the dependent variable" and "independent variable"

Step 5: Involve the common wisdom for Docendo discimus. Simplify the assumptions collectively and devise an analytical framework not necessarily to prove cause and effect but to describe fundamental concepts within a realm of inquiry

Step 6: Dismiss the statements of the other argumentum ad lapidem without giving proof of its absurdity because they fail to address the merits of the claim in dispute.

Step 7: Change the Argumentum ad lazarum of the 46 Million uninsured Americans who receive their reward of good citizenship in the afterlife.

Step 8: Ask Mr. Leon Panetta’s driver for the refined details if the Tabula rasa thesis is required in favor of the nature versus nurture debate, when it comes to aspects of one's personality, social and emotional behavior and intelligence or;

Step 9: Include The existence of the one who is doing the thinking on the account of being for the foundational element of "Cogito, ergo sum because at the very least, there is an "I" in the civilization of the American human society rather than the Natura naturans of the exclusives on the basis of the Natura non facit saltus

My humble opinions are beyond the borders of policy spectrum just to avoid the danger of dogma and -

To protect the touchstone of the bridge extending towards healthy life over the river of progressive public mind flowing at the speed of life !

State Your Support

Suffolk.New York.Can — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:32:11 EDT

State Your Support
Dear Mr. President,

We strongly support your commitment to comprehensive health reform.

This is not a luxury. The continuing, sharp escalation of health care costs for families, businesses, and government is unsustainable. Reform is imperative.

We believe that health reform must be enacted this year.

Reform is needed to help America’s families struggling with rising costs and those who are losing their insurance. At the same time, real health reform is crucial to keeping American businesses competitive in the world economy and for the country’s long-term economic viability. As our country faces economic challenges, the time for reform is now.

We support health reform that follows these principles:

Protect families’ financial health
Assure affordable, quality health coverage for all Americans
Provide portability of coverage
Guarantee choice of doctors
Invest in prevention and wellness
Improve patient safety and quality of care
End barriers to coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions
Reduce long-term growth of health costs for businesses and government
During these extraordinarily challenging times, we need to put aside past differences and address the health and economic crisis. Our shared interest must come before narrow interests so we can achieve a health system that is affordable and provides high quality for all Americans. We will support your budget with its reserve fund dedicated to achieving health care reform in a fiscally responsible manner. Each of us must be prepared to contribute to achieving this fundamental goal.

By signing this statement we affirm our commitment to work with you and our Congressional leaders to enact legislation this year which provides affordable, high quality coverage for all Americans.

Please go to WWW.HealthReform.gov and Stae Your Support.
Thank you

Health Care Stories

Suffolk.New York.Can — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 09:51:39 EDT

Why is Health Care important to me.

My cousin had a stroke and had no insurance. He has had a tremendous struggle in getting proper care. He is paralyzed and was released[from the hospital] to his home with restricted aid because of new insurance. This has been a burden for family members who are doing what they can. His mother,a nurse and in her mid 70's, has been providing almost his total care.

Health Reform Updated Facts

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 22:33:37 EDT

www.HealthReform.gov

There's a link from the home page, barackobama.com, click on Health Care Reform Take Action.

Obama asks men to be better fathers than their own

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 14:47:22 EDT

By CALVIN WOODWARD – 1 hour ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — Barack Obama got a basketball, his first name and ambition from his father. Little else.

The son gave back more than he received: a lifetime of ruminations about the man who abandoned the family, a memoir named "Dreams from My Father," and endless reflections on his own successes and shortcomings as a parent of Sasha, 8, and Malia, 10.

As a candidate and now president, he's been telling men what sort of father they should be. It's become his Father's Day ritual.

He's asking American men to be better fathers than his own.

The president showcased fatherhood in a series of events and a magazine article in advance of Father's Day this Sunday. He said he came to understand the importance of fatherhood from its absence in his childhood homes — just as an estimated 24 million Americans today are growing up without a dad.

Fathers run deep in the political culture as they do everywhere else, for better and worse. Michelle Obama has said many times how her late dad, Fraser, is her reference point and rock — she checks in with him, in her mind, routinely, and at important moments.

Obama's presidential rival, John McCain, called his own memoirs "Faith of My Fathers," tracing generations of high-achieving scamps. The father-son presidencies of the George Bushes were bookends on Bill Clinton, whose father drowned in a ditch before the future president was born and whose stepfather was an abusive alcoholic nicknamed Dude.

A Kenyan goatherder-turned-intellectual who clawed his way to scholarships and Harvard, Barack Hussein Obama Sr. left a family behind to get his schooling in the United States. He started another family here, then left his second wife and 2-year-old Barack Jr. to return to Africa with another woman.

His promise flamed out in Africa after stints working for an oil company and the government; he fell into drink and died in a car crash when his son was 21, a student at Columbia University.

"I don't want to be the kind of father I had," the president is quoted as telling a friend in a new book about him.

And in an interview Friday with CBS News, Obama said: "It was only later in life that I found out that he actually led a very tragic life. And in that sense, it was the myth that I was chasing as opposed to knowing who he really was."

His half-sister, Maya, called his memoirs "part of the process of excavating his father."

Obama now cajoles men to be better fathers — not the kind who must be unearthed in the soul.

His finger-wagging is most pointed when addressing other black men, reflecting years of worry about the fabric of black families and single mothers, but it applies to everyone.

Father's Day 2007: "Let's admit to ourselves that there are a lot of men out there that need to stop acting like boys; who need to realize that responsibility does not end at conception; who need to know that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child but the courage to raise a child."

Father's Day 2008: "Any fool can have a child. That doesn't make you a father. It's the courage to raise a child that makes you a father."

Father's Day 2009: "We need to step out of our own heads and tune in. We need to turn off the television and start talking with our kids, and listening to them, and understanding what's going on in their lives."

He doesn't hold himself out as the ideal dad. No driven politician can.

"I know I have been an imperfect father," he writes in Sunday's Parade magazine. "I know I have made mistakes. I have lost count of all the times, over the years, when the demands of work have taken me from the duties of fatherhood."

He volunteered for those demands, as all people do when they want power. His years as a community organizer, Illinois lawmaker, U.S. senator and presidential candidate often kept him apart from family.

At the same time, he went to great lengths in the 2008 campaign to find time with his girls and wife, and now considers the routine family time one of the joys of living and working in the White House.

The new book "Renegade" by Richard Wolffe recounts strains in the marriage early this decade, arising from his absences and from what Michelle Obama apparently considered his selfish careerism at the time. The author interviewed the Obamas, friends and associates.

Obama himself attributed his "fierce ambitions" to his dad while crediting his mother — a loving but frequently absent figure — with giving him the means to pursue them.

"Someone once said that every man is trying to either live up to his father's expectations or make up for his father's mistakes," he once wrote, "and I suppose that may explain my particular malady as well as anything else." By malady, he meant the will to achieve.

Obama was a schoolboy in Hawaii when his father came back to visit. He gave his dad a tie. His father gave him a basketball and African figurines and came to his class to speak about Kenya. He was an impressive, mysterious figure whom Obama found compelling, volatile and vaguely threatening.

The visit took a sour turn when Obama went to watch "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and his father made him shut off the TV, saying he watched too much. Obama slammed the bedroom door; a loud argument ensued among grown-ups.

Not the quality time Obama has in mind in asking dads to turn off the TV now

Insurers Reserve the Right to Ruin Your Life

Melanie — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 13:14:05 EDT

by Tim Foley

Now that we’re full-on into silly season, where the policy is getting buried under the politics of the moment, it’s more important than ever to focus of these two essentials. One, reform that does not change the game for private, for-profit insurance is not real reform. Two, insurers will not police themselves, even when the business practice in question is morally indefensible. Such it was that yesterday at a hearing in the House of Representatives, CEOs from UnitedHealth, Assurant Health, and WellPoint point-blank refused to limit cancellations of insurance policies for sick patients.

This is a process known as rescission, and it’s the flip side of the pre-existing condition dilemma. For pre-existing conditions, you’re denied a plan or care at the beginning. For rescissions, you’re denied after you’re already sick. The policy exists to fight intentional abuse of the system. If you intentionally leave something off when you’re applying for insurance and sign a statement saying you haven’t, that’s a pretty clear breach of contract. But, as Bob Laszewski, a former COO of an insurance company himself, writes, “It would be an inadvertent and non-material misstatement to sign your health insurance application having promised you told all but left something, that in the end did not matter, off of it. It is always important to be thorough and honest in filling out a health insurance application but sometimes we forget things.” In Robin’s case, she didn’t even forget anything – it was a mistake on a medical record. Regardless, Laszewki asks the pertinent question: “How could you sleep at night knowing you retroactively canceled (or rescinded) a sick person’s health insurance because of something that really didn’t matter?”

And yet, when given the opportunity point blank to say their companies would cease rescissions except when in reaction to “intentional fraud,” all three CEOs refused.

We hear a lot from Karen Ignani of AHIP about how private insurance knows it must earn a seat at the table. We hear from Joe Lieberman that the private insurance market is plenty competitive and doesn’t require the competition on quality from a public health insurance option. Insurance is fine. Yet these companies haven’t just refused to limit rescissions. They’ve made money off of it: $300 million in California alone. As the L.A. Times reports, “It also found that policyholders with breast cancer, lymphoma and more than 1,000 other conditions were targeted for rescission and that employees were praised in performance reviews for terminating the policies of customers with expensive illnesses.”

Let’s say that again. These companies praised employees for terminating the policies of sick patients with expensive illnesses.

Forget the politics and the theater and the supposed evils of government. This is health insurance as it’s practiced in this country. That’s the game. We need to change it.

Equal Benefits for Same Sex Indviduals

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:13:05 EDT

Is more than that necessary? Why do others need to know more than that about their personal relationship? What will/or do Wedding papers accomplish for them?

This evening the President signed a memorandum expanding federal benefits for the same-sex partners of Foreign Service and executive branch government employees. In his remarks before signing the memorandum, he said that this was a first step: "We've got more work to do to ensure that government treats all its citizens equally; to fight injustice and intolerance in all its forms; and to bring about that more perfect union. I'm committed to these efforts, and I pledge to work tirelessly on behalf of these issues in the months and years to come."

The official statement released along with the memorandum itself told the sort of story that moved him to sign it, and also announced his support for the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act of 2009:
STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT ON THE PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM ON FEDERAL BENEFITS AND NON-DISCRIMINATION, AND SUPPORT OF THE LIEBERMAN-BALDWIN BENEFITS LEGISLATION
In 2007, Michael Guest, the first openly gay Ambassador confirmed by the United States Senate, resigned from the Foreign Service. He loved his career, but he had to leave it in the end -- because he believed that the country he served was failing to implement the principles of equality it espoused abroad. His partner was ineligible for training provided to Ambassadorial spouses; he bore the costs of his partner's transportation to his placements abroad; and his partner did not receive the overseas benefits and allowances given to spouses of Ambassadors.

It is too late to prevent Ambassador Guest from having to make the choice he made, but today I am proud to issue a Presidential Memorandum that will go a long way toward achieving equality for many of the hard-working, dedicated, and patriotic LGBT Americans serving in our Federal Government -- Americans like Ambassador Guest. In consultation with Secretary Clinton, who in her role as Secretary of State oversees our foreign service employees, and Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry, who oversees human resource management for our civil service employees, my Administration has identified a number of areas in which greater equality can be achieved under existing law by extending to the same-sex partners of Federal employees many of the same benefits already available to the spouses of heterosexual Federal employees. I am therefore requesting the Secretary of State and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management to extend the benefits they have identified to the same-sex partners of Federal employees where doing so can be achieved consistent with Federal law. I am also requesting the heads of all other executive departments and agencies to conduct a review of the benefits they administer to determine which may legally be extended to same-sex partners.

But this Presidential Memorandum is just a start. Unfortunately, my Administration is not authorized by existing Federal law to provide same-sex couples with the full range of benefits enjoyed by heterosexual married couples. That's why I stand by my long-standing commitment to work with Congress to repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage Act. It's discriminatory, it interferes with States' rights, and it's time we overturned it.

I am also proud to announce my support for an important piece of legislation introduced in both Houses of Congress last month -- the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act of 2009. This legislation will extend to the same-sex partners of Federal employees the same benefits already enjoyed by the opposite-sex spouses of Federal employees. The legislation has a number of co-sponsors in both Houses of Congress, but among those many sponsors, I want to recognize one in particular -- Representative Tammy Baldwin, who has been a real leader on this issue, and more broadly on the LGBT struggle for equality. Representative Baldwin, I look forward to working with you to achieve the important objectives set out in this bill as it moves through the legislative process. I also look forward to working with the bill's Senate champions, Senators Lieberman and Collins; I know that they will approach this process with the same spirit of cooperation in pursuit of our shared goals that they bring to all of their work in the Senate.

Extending equal benefits to the same-sex partners of Federal employees is the right thing to do. It is also sound economic policy. Many top employers in the private sector already offer benefits to the same-sex partners of their employees; those companies recognize that offering partner benefits helps them compete for and retain the brightest and most talented employees. The Federal Government is at a disadvantage on that score right now, and change is long overdue.

As Americans, we are all affected when our promises of equality go unfulfilled. Through measures like the Presidential Memorandum I am issuing today and the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act of 2009, we will advance the principles upon which our Nation was founded and continue to perfect our Union.

(President Barack Obama signs an executive order granting Federal employees with same sex partners more
benefits in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, June 17, 2009.
Offical White House Photographer Lawrence Jackson)

The President unveiled "United We Serve"

Melanie — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:33:27 EDT

Dear Friend, Today, in a video message, President Obama unveiled United We Serve - a sustained effort to expand the size and impact of volunteer efforts in addressing tough challenges facing the nation. The initiative, which will be led by the Corporation for National and Community Service, officially kicks off on June 22, and runs for 81 days through a new National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11. To make it easy to get involved, the President is urging Americans to visit the Corporation's web site, Serve.gov, where visitors can search for local volunteer opportunities, recruit volunteers by posting their organization's projects, or get ideas for creating their own projects with friends, families, and neighbors. During this summer, the President is renewing his call to all Americans to identify needs in their communities, engage in meaningful service to create change - and stay engaged long after September. The President's call focuses on four key areas where everyone can make an impact in their community: energy and the environment, health care, education and community renewal. Please go to Serve.gov today to view the President's video, and get started on your summer of service. In Service, Nicola Goren
Acting CEO
Corporation for National and Community Service

The President needs our help NOW!! He can't do it alone!!!

Melanie — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 03:23:00 EDT

Last year, millions of Americans came together for a great purpose.

Folks like you assembled a grassroots movement that shocked the political establishment and changed the course of our nation. When Washington insiders counted us out, we put it all on the line and changed our democracy from the bottom up. But that's not why we did it.

The pundits told us it was impossible -- that the donations working people could afford and the hours volunteers could give would never loosen the vise grip of big money and powerful special interests. We proved them wrong. But as important as that was, that's not why we did it.

Today, spiraling health care costs are pushing our families and businesses to the brink of ruin, while millions of Americans go without the care they desperately need. Fixing this broken system will be enormously difficult. But we can succeed. The chance to make fundamental change like this in people's daily lives -- that is why we did it.

The campaign to pass real health care reform in 2009 is the biggest test of our movement since the election. Once again, victory is far from certain. Our opposition will be fierce, and they have been down this road before. To prevail, we must once more build a coast-to-coast operation ready to knock on doors, deploy volunteers, get out the facts, and show the world how real change happens in America.

And just like before, I cannot do it without your support.

So I'm asking you to remember all that you gave over the last two years to get us here -- all the time, resources, and faith you invested as a down payment to earn us our place at this crossroads in history. All that you've done has led up to this -- and whether or not our country takes the next crucial step depends on what you do right now.

Will you donate whatever you can afford to support the campaign for real health care reform in 2009?

It doesn't matter how much you can give, as long as you give what you can. Millions of families on the brink are counting on us to do just that. I know we can deliver.

Thank you, so much, for getting us this far. And thank you for standing up once again to take us the rest of the way.

Sincerely,

President Barack Obama

Incubator Meeting Results

Suffolk.New York.Can — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 11:31:54 EDT

Neighborhood Business owners and some new starts gathered together to discuss recovery standing. TD Financial sent a Representative to learn more about our group. Our request is for a loan to tie over until Stimulus index listed requested are addressed by the State. We are in a New York State Empire Zone which is to provide assistance to businesses within it's territory. Forgot to have them sign in at meeting. There were 10 in attendance; Waiting to hear from bank and State. Will be meeting with other TARP Banks throught the week. All exisiting businesses are doing there best to hold on.

Health Reform Facts From the White House

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 15:39:13 EDT

Paying for Health Care Reform$313 Billion in Additional Savings to Create a Deficit Neutral PlanWe have the most expensive health care system in the world, but do not get the best results. The rising costs of health care are a burden on our families and a drain on our long-term economic growth. If we continue on the course we are on, health care expenditures will reach 20 percent of GDP within a decade. Rapidly rising health care costs are leading our nation down a fiscally unsustainable path.For the health of the American people and the health of our economy, we must act now to bring down health care costs and reform the health care system. It is central to the long-term prosperity of the United States. That is why the President is committed to passing health care reform this year. Guided by the principle that we should fix what’s broken and build on what already works, the President wants to pass health care reform that allows one to keep their health insurance and choose their health care providers, expands coverage to the millions without, and brings down the cost of coverage.The President is committed to undertaking reform that is completely paid for and deficit neutral over the next decade. That is why he put forward in his FY 2010 Budget an historic $635 billion down payment on reform. Roughly half of this amount comes from revenue proposals, including limiting the value of itemized deductions for families making over a quarter-million dollars a year to the rates they were during the Reagan years, and about half comes from savings from Medicare and Medicaid.Since making this proposal, the Administration has worked with Congress on other ways to offset fully the cost of health care reform through additional savings and revenues. To that end, the Administration is detailing today savings proposals that will contribute another $313 billion over 10 years to paying for health care reform, bringing the total scoreable offsets put forward by the Administration to nearly $950 billion over 10 years. Together, this would extend the solvency of Medicare’s Hospital Insurance Trust Fund by seven years to about 2024, and reduce beneficiary premiums for physician and outpatient services by about $43 billion over the next 10 years. The Administration hopes these suggestions will help Congress as it continues to draft legislation, and remains open to any other proposals to pay for reform that Congress may put forward.
SourceHealth Care Reserve Fund($ in billions)10 yearsFY 2010 Budget- Medicare and Medicaid Savings- Revenues$635$309$326Additional Medicare and Medicaid Savings- Incorporate productivity adjustments into Medicare payment
    updates
- Reduce hospital subsidies for treating the uninsured as
    coverage increases- Pay better prices for Medicare Part D drugs

- Other

$313$110
$106
$75$22Total$948Reforming the health care system does not end at expanding coverage and making sure that it is paid for; we also must address the underlying problems in our health care system that impede quality improvements and raise costs. The President therefore believes that in addition to scoreable offsets, we must take steps to transform the health care system, such as investing in health care information technology, patient-centered quality research, prevention and wellness, and in creating a system that pays providers for providing better care not just more care. Over time, these steps will help to produce a health care system that works better and costs less. Paying for Health Care Reform: New SavingsAs was emphasized when the President’s Budget was initially released, the reserve fund represents a substantial down payment but is not by itself sufficient to fully fund comprehensive reform. The President has insisted that reform must be deficit-neutral based on real savings and revenue estimates as determined by impartial scorers. Thus, in addition to the proposals included in the FY 2010 Budget, the Administration is putting forward policy options to further rein in federal health spending, make the system more efficient, and deliver better quality of care. When combined with the Budget proposals, these new options would extend the solvency of Medicare’s Hospital Insurance Trust Fund by seven years to about 2024. These new savings include:

Incorporate productivity adjustments into Medicare payment updates. Productivity in the U.S. economy has been improving over time. However, most Medicare payments have not been systematically adjusted to reflect these system-wide improvements. We should permanently adjust most annual Medicare payment updates by half of the economy-wide productivity factor estimated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This adjustment will encourage greater efficiency in health care provision, while more accurately aligning Medicare payments with provider costs.

Reduce subsidies to hospitals for treating the uninsured as coverage increases. Instead of paying hospitals to treat patients without health insurance, we should give people coverage so that they have insurance to begin with. As health reform phases in, the number of uninsured will go down, and we would be able to reduce payments to hospitals for treating those previously uncovered. This would be done by establishing a new mandatory mechanism to better target payments to hospitals for unreimbursed care remaining after coverage increases. Beginning in FY 2013, payments would be gradually phased down so that by 2019, funding would equal 25 percent of Medicare/Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) funding in 2013, and updated by inflation.

Pay better prices for Medicare Part D drugs. In its meeting with the President and subsequent communication, the pharmaceutical industry has committed itself to helping to control the rate of growth in health care spending. There are a variety of ways to achieve this goal. For example, drug reimbursement could be reduced for beneficiaries dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. The Administration is working with the Congress to develop the most appropriate policy to achieve these savings.

Other Savings

Adjust payment rates for physician imaging services to better reflect actual usage. To provide more accurate payment for physician imaging services, the Department of Health and Human Services would increase the equipment utilization factor for advanced imaging (such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) machines) from 50 percent to 95 percent. This proposal – which is closely aligned with a Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recommendation – would better reflect how these technologies are actually used.

Adopt MedPAC’s recommendations for 2010 payments to skilled nursing facilities, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and long-term care hospitals. To bring down costs and maintain quality, we shouldupdate payments based on MedPAC’s consideration of multiple variables, such as quality, access to care, and adequacy of payment. Doing so would implement MedPAC’s 2010 payment recommendations for skilled nursing facilities, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and long-term care hospitals.

Cut waste, fraud, and abuse. It is important that patients get the best care, not just more care. Unnecessary treatments are not only expensive, but also can harm the health of the patient. To discourage physicians from ordering unnecessary or excessive treatment, we should increase the scrutiny of physicians in high-risk areas or those that order a high volume of high-risk services (such as home health, durable medical equipment, and home infusion therapy) through additional pre-payment review.

Paying for Health Care Reform: 2010 Budget ProposalsThe above savings would be in addition to the down payment for comprehensive health care reform of $635 billion over 10 years detailed in the FY 2010 Budget. The reserve fund is financed roughly half through proposals to generate more revenue, and half through efficiencies and savings from Medicare and Medicaid. Based on our projections, the Medicare proposals contained in the reserve fund would extend the solvency date of the Hospital Insurance (HI) Trust Fund by two years and reduce beneficiary premiums for physician and outpatient services by about $33 billion over the next 10 years. As a result of these proposals, Medicare beneficiaries will also see an improvement in the quality of their services. The reserve fund includes a broad array of savings proposals including:

Reducing Medicare overpayments to private insurers. The establishment of a competitive system where payments are based upon an average of plans’ bids submitted to Medicare would save taxpayers close to $177 billion over 10 years, as well as reduce Part B premiums.

Improving Medicare and Medicaid payment accuracy. By strengthening program integrity efforts, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will address vulnerabilities that have led to billions of dollars in overpayments and fraud each year.

Improving care after hospitalizations and reducing readmission rates. A combination of incentive payments and penalties should lead to better care and result in fewer readmissions – saving roughly $25 billion over 10 years.

Expanding the Hospital Quality Improvement Program: By linking a portion of Medicare payments for acute in-patient hospital services to hospitals’ performance on specific quality measures, quality of care for beneficiaries will improve, and Medicare will save approximately $12 billion over 10 years.

New Technologies and Participation in Govenment

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 15:23:52 EDT

Posted by Vivek Kundra and Katie StantonInnovation in social technology has created unprecedented opportunity to connect you to your government in order to obtain information and services and to participate in policymaking. If you are on Facebook or MySpace, government should be accessible there, too. This is the core of what we call "context-driven government." Government is only open if it is accessible. So we must bring the important services and issues of public interest into the online communities in which we already work, live, and play and create new communities for mutual engagement. This is why the White House has created communities on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr and why we’ve established the Open Government blog for public engagement. We want to make it easy to see the latest news, photos and videos from the Obama Administration and, more important, to provide a platform for you to comment, ask and answer questions, and engage with us, your family and communities around important issues.This weekend we’ll do two postings about opportunities and impediments to adopting "Web 2.0 technologies" as they are often called– and creating context-driven government. This one focuses on technology. The next addresses policy.Innovative technologies like those referenced above are particularly relevant to this discussion because they represent new media tools that improve communication, empower users to create content, enhance information sharing, and promote collaboration. Common examples of are social networks, blogs, and wikis.How You Can Help1. Improving dissemination of government information to inform participation: The National Weather Service does a great job of taking complex satellite data and making it widely accessible to people via new and traditional channels. When you wake up, you can reach for your i-Phone, radio or newspaper and know whether it’s going to rain. How can we do this with other important government information, such as Medicaid and Medicare benefits, the state of the power grid or the Federal budget? What are the tools and techniques for democratizing access to government data?2. Enhancing public participation in government activities: New social technologies like this blog are making it possible to participate in government in new ways. With the right tools, there are opportunities to bring government decision-making to the people. What are the best technological strategies – in the public or private sector – for empowering government officials and the public to work together to:a. Gather information and data to inform a policy – Regulations.gov collects public comment on agency rulemakings.b. Generate ideas and innovations – TSA’s Idea Factory generates ideas from 40,000 employees.c. Analyze data and underlying assumptions -- The NASA Clickworkers project invites the public to sift through images of Mars.d. Solicit expertise – The Peer-to-Patent project taps the expertise of distributed scientists and technologists to inform the patent examination process.e. Draft policy statements – The Open Government blog will be starting a collaborative drafting process beginning next week.f. Resolve disputes – The Morris K. Udall Foundation, a government agency, work with citizens to engage in environmental dispute resolution.g. Distribute grants and funds - DefenseSolutions.gov allows entrepreneurs in industry and academia a way to get innovative solutions funded.h. Engage in collective action to address a problem – The Department of Transportation is funding an online bus stop design competition.Share with us your ideas, examples and stories for the best innovations that could connect government and the public over at the OSTP blog as usual.Vivek Kundra is Chief Information Officer, Katie Posted by Vivek Kundra and Katie StantonInnovation in social technology has created unprecedented opportunity to connect you to your government in order to obtain information and services and to participate in policymaking. If you are on Facebook or MySpace, government should be accessible there, too. This is the core of what we call "context-driven government." Government is only open if it is accessible. So we must bring the important services and issues of public interest into the online communities in which we already work, live, and play and create new communities for mutual engagement. This is why the White House has created communities on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr and why we’ve established the Open Government blog for public engagement. We want to make it easy to see the latest news, photos and videos from the Obama Administration and, more important, to provide a platform for you to comment, ask and answer questions, and engage with us, your family and communities around important issues.This weekend we’ll do two postings about opportunities and impediments to adopting "Web 2.0 technologies" as they are often called– and creating context-driven government. This one focuses on technology. The next addresses policy.Innovative technologies like those referenced above are particularly relevant to this discussion because they represent new media tools that improve communication, empower users to create content, enhance information sharing, and promote collaboration. Common examples of are social networks, blogs, and wikis.How You Can Help1. Improving dissemination of government information to inform participation: The National Weather Service does a great job of taking complex satellite data and making it widely accessible to people via new and traditional channels. When you wake up, you can reach for your i-Phone, radio or newspaper and know whether it’s going to rain. How can we do this with other important government information, such as Medicaid and Medicare benefits, the state of the power grid or the Federal budget? What are the tools and techniques for democratizing access to government data?2. Enhancing public participation in government activities: New social technologies like this blog are making it possible to participate in government in new ways. With the right tools, there are opportunities to bring government decision-making to the people. What are the best technological strategies – in the public or private sector – for empowering government officials and the public to work together to:a. Gather information and data to inform a policy – Regulations.gov collects public comment on agency rulemakings.b. Generate ideas and innovations – TSA’s Idea Factory generates ideas from 40,000 employees.c. Analyze data and underlying assumptions -- The NASA Clickworkers project invites the public to sift through images of Mars.d. Solicit expertise – The Peer-to-Patent project taps the expertise of distributed scientists and technologists to inform the patent examination process.e. Draft policy statements – The Open Government blog will be starting a collaborative drafting process beginning next week.f. Resolve disputes – The Morris K. Udall Foundation, a government agency, work with citizens to engage in environmental dispute resolution.g. Distribute grants and funds - DefenseSolutions.gov allows entrepreneurs in industry and academia a way to get innovative solutions funded.h. Engage in collective action to address a problem – The Department of Transportation is funding an online bus stop design competition.Share with us your ideas, examples and stories for the best innovations that could connect government and the public over at the OSTP blog as usual.Vivek Kundra is Chief Information Officer, Katie

The Rise of Single-Payer Health Care

Melanie — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 01:46:40 EDT

Truthout Original ARTICLEURL addthis_pub = 'jjacobo'; addthis_brand = 'Truthout'; addthis_options = 'reddit, delicious, newsvine, stumbleupon, myspace, google'; The Rise of Single-Payer Health Care

Friday 12 June 2009

by: David Swanson, t r u t h o u t | Report

Single-payer health care supporters rally in Los Angeles in April. (Photo: Getty Images)

Health care reform plans are being drafted and passed around on both sides of Capitol Hill, but the plan with the greatest number of Congress members behind it was first introduced as a bill six years ago. With two new co-sponsors having just signed on, Congressman John Conyers's single-payer health care plan, HR 676, now has 80 Congress members supporting it.

A House committee held a hearing on single-payer health coverage on Wednesday, and a Senate committee included single payer in a hearing on Thursday. Many opponents of single payer, including President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, say it would be the ideal solution if it were possible.

A single-payer or "Medicare for all" system that eliminates for-profit health insurance and simply pays for everyone's treatment by private doctors and hospitals of their choosing is also the only solution consistently favored by a majority of Americans in polls. The proposal, already in place in most of the world's wealthy nations, is raised at every health care town-hall forum that Congress members or President Obama speak at, including the one Obama held on Thursday in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

The president always rejects single payer on the grounds that some Americans are too fond of their health insurance companies to part with them. A report by Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting last week found that the corporate media still virtually bans coverage of single payer. A Senate bill being championed by Sen. Chris Dodd in place of ailing Sen. Edward Kennedy, does not include single payer (which is supported by only one US senator, Bernie Sanders). The Kennedy-Dodd bill, at least in its initial draft, does not even include a "public option," that is a Medicare-like program to exist alongside the private insurance companies. The House bill is being drafted by one current and two former co-sponsors of HR 676, Congressmen George Miller, Henry Waxman and Charles Rangel, but it avoids single payer, championing a public option instead. Other competing Senate bills are expected to complicate things further.

The approach taken by the Kennedy-Dodd bill and considered for the House bill is, rather than eliminating health insurance companies, expanding them by making insurance mandatory and subsidizing its purchase. While this approach is favored by the insurance companies, which have been among the primary participants in White House and Congressional health care forums this year, it is not supported by other corporations that would rather not be required to provide health insurance to employees. If anything has emerged on Capitol Hill this week, it is a chaotic lack of consensus except around the idea that something must be done to address a health care system that is damaging Americans' health and economy. Whether the growing chaos opens the door to single payer remains to be seen, and that possibility appears much more real in the House than in the Senate.

In the House, the progressive Caucus has declared that, while it would prefer single payer, it will back no bill without a public option; the Black, Hispanic and Asian caucuses have also backed a public option; and Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said that no bill without a public option will pass. This should mean that, as the debate advances, the House will be more likely to back single payer than any other solution. Or, rather, it would be if it could create laws without having to get them through the Senate as well.

Sen. Max Baucus has taken the lead in Kennedy's absence and chaired hearings last month to which he refused to invite any supporters of single payer. Baucus had 13 people arrested for speaking up at his hearings uninvited, an action that generated more media coverage of single payer than any poll or study ever could have. One of those arrested, Dr. Margaret Flowers, is the Maryland co-chair of Physicians for a National Health Program. She was interviewed by Ed Schultz on "MSNBC," who began covering single payer in a major way. "Bill Moyer's Journal" on PBS also focused on single payer and aired interviews with three leading advocates, including Donna Smith of the California Nurses Association (CNA). Tim Carpenter of Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) was interviewed on Fox News. Even the Washington Post took note.

Over the past few weeks, the relatively serious media attention has inspired more activism and vice versa. Senator Baucus has been surrounded by demands for single payer at town-hall forums in Montana and questioned by activists with video cameras in Washington, DC, as have health insurance executives and lobbyists.

Congress members John Conyers, Raul Grijalva, Donna Edwards, Steve Cohen and Emanuel Cleaver, along with Carpenter of PDA and Smith and Michael Lighty of CNA met with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer to lobby for single payer. Conyers has become increasingly outspoken, and on Wednesday evening, complained of being shut out by the president and by Waxman and Rangel, promising not to let up. On June 3, Senator Baucus met with advocates of single payer and told them he was wrong to have excluded them. But he said he would continue to do so.

However, on Wednesday, the Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee in the House, Chaired by Congressman Robert Andrews, held a serious hearing on the topic of single payer, with four of the five witnesses favoring a single-payer system, and Conyers was one of the four.

After the hearing and a briefing, Stephen Spitz of PDA told me, "Some of us met with Congressman Conyers in his office when he suddenly said: 'Let's go to Nancy Pelosi's office.' Off we went and, after talking to an aide of the speaker, we talked with Speaker Pelosi in her office in the US Capitol. She said she is for single payer and encouraged us to keep on doing what we were doing. She said that single payer cannot pass this year in the Congress. She said she was fighting to get a meaningful public option. Congressman Conyers asked her to let him (and experts he would bring) conduct a briefing before the entire House Democratic caucus on HR 676."

The next day, on Thursday, the Senate provided a stark contrast. The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions held a hearing with possibly a record number of panelists, one of whom, Dr. Flowers, favored single payer. Senator Dodd, chairing in place of the absent Kennedy, opened by remarking that he'd never seen a panel so large and that he at first thought the panel was the audience. While hearings often include as many as six witnesses, this one included two panels with a total of 24 speakers. The first panel, with 15 speakers, began with Flowers's very brief statement, followed by 14 other prepared statements, none of them responding to Flowers.

Flowers began by indicating that she spoke for a majority of Americans. No one ever challenged that claim. Flowers criticized the idea of a uniquely American market solution as a delusion that has failed for 40 years. She said that health care in the United States is rationed right now ("rationing" being one of the dangers of "government health care" warned about by the sole witness against single payer on Wednesday). Congressman Dennis Kucinich had made the same point on Wednesday. The threats of wait time and denial of care are here under the current system. In what other industrialized nation, Flowers asked, do people hold bake sales to pay for their health care? In what other industrialized nation do millions of people go bankrupt because of medical bills? None of the following 14 speakers or any of the senators in the room answered these questions. In fact, they directed more criticism at the Kennedy-Dodd bill.

Randel Johnson, vice president of the US Chamber of Commerce, warned that employer mandates could force companies to go out of business. William Dennis of the National Federation of Independent Business claimed to be concerned that employer mandates would hurt low-wage employees. There were no low-wage employees on the panel.

Dr. Samantha Rosman of the American Medical Association (AMA) spoke against any public option. She did not provide arguments against it so much as announce that the AMA would not accept it. President Obama has said that a public option must be included. He is scheduled to speak to the AMA on Monday.

Other panelists included right-wing think tankers and the CEO of a supermarket chain, who advocated urging employees to take better care of themselves. Two panelists other than Flowers were not from the usual crowd. They were Gerald Shea of the AFL-CIO and Dennis Rivera of SEIU, both leaders of labor unions that have backed HR 676 in the past and whose members overwhelmingly favor single payer. The AFL-CIO does not have a clear position now. Rose Ann DeMoro, vice president of the AFL-CIO, was part of the meeting with Baucus and advocates single payer. Shea mentioned that unions have always favored single payer, but he moved immediately to discussing the details of Dodd's plan, favoring a public option and employer mandates, but opposing taxing employees for health insurance payments made by employers. Rivera, too, favored a public option.

The panel was followed by a lengthy question-and-answer period. For a long time no senators asked Flowers any questions. Finally, she grabbed a microphone and asked to speak. She responded to a discussion of preventive care by pointing out that when the goal of health coverage is not profit, an incentive is created to keep people healthy since doing so saves the public money.

Sen. Barbara Mikulski later asked Flowers why a public option isn't good enough. Flowers said that one problem is that insurance companies will cherry-pick the healthiest patients and leave the sickest to the public program. More importantly, Flowers argued, much of the waste in the current arrangement is due to the fragmentation of the coverage system into 1,300 different companies, requiring hospitals to employ staff to interface with them. Adding a public option would only make this worse, Flowers said, not fix it.

Sen. Jeff Bingaman tried to claim he had found a consensus among most of the panelists on various points, acknowledging that he was excluding Flowers. The fact that 14 of the 15 panelists represented a smaller portion of the public than the one panelist alone did not seem to matter.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, who supports single payer, asked Flowers to expand on why single payer is the best plan and then proceeded to criticize another panelist, the CEO of Aetna, for denying people health care.

While the Senate has a long way to go, even just to measure up to the House, single-payer advocates are encouraged by the progress this week. Katie Robbins of Healthcare-NOW! called Wednesday's and Thursday's hearings "measurable successes of the groundswell of support for a just, equitable system based on single-payer financing."

"However," said Robbins, "the conversation is just beginning. We demand full hearings on single payer in the Senate, the House Ways and Means Committee, and the Energy and Commerce Committee. In addition, a fair scoring of single-payer legislation must be included in the Congressional Budget Office's report on health care reform."

Kevin Zeese of Prosperity Agenda emailed me from Thursday's Senate hearing: "The multi-player advocates are divided. Bitterly so over mandates, paying for their plans and whether to have a public plan to compete. The senate is trying to fix the equivalent of a broken egg. It cannot be done. But they all have their heads in the sand and their hand in the till. Single payer is making progress. More people know single payer is right than admit it. It will win the day but they will pursue the wrong paths until they run into the dead end."

A single-payer rally is planned for Friday, June 26, at 6:00 PM in front of Union Station in Washington, DC. Those likely to show up often speak about their struggle as one for basic human rights. Those who imagine the single-payer movement might go away often speak about health care reform in terms of "political feasibility" and "focus group message testing." Perhaps the growing success of the push for single payer is not so surprising.

-------

David Swanson is the author of the upcoming book "Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming a More Perfect Union," by Seven Stories Press. You can preorder it at http://tinyurl.com/daybreakbook.

OK FOLKS! PUT YOUR VOLUNTEER HATS ON FOR HEALTH CARE REFORM!

Melanie — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 18:36:20 EDT

VOLUNTEER TO GET CONGRESS TO PASS HEALTH CARE REFORM!!!!! PLEASE READ BELOW!!!

I know we had a slammin' victory in 2008 and we had an amazing Inauguration. We are still basking in the glow of our victory. But the Whitehouse is moving at 150 miles an hour with a 100 tons of garbage on their plate that they have to deal with every day.

We have to help them.

We got them there, NOW we have to support them.

THEY CAN NOT DO THIS ON THEIR OWN.

We have to be somewhat incessant in getting the message across to the folks out there that its not just COOL to have President Obama, Vice President Biden, Sec. of State, Hillary Clinton, David Axelrod, Rahm Immanuel, Press Sec Gibbs. and all the pretty faces (and David Plouff helping on the outside too of course), its EFFECTIVE.

I mean look, this country is in the doghouse. The ball of yarn is so tangled up they are just now finding the end and starting to detangle..and they have a long way to go. OK?

So what's up? What do they need all of us for next?

HEALTH CARE REFORM!!!!! HEALTH CARE REFORM!!!! Health Care Reform.

We have to get just as bolstered up and just as caffeinenated for this fight as any. BELIEVE ME, there is a TON of money on the other end of this battle and they are going to fight like the SWIFTBOATERS. They are mean, greedy, manipulating and they will twist and lie and do anything they can to put out the most grossly disgusting propaganda against Pres. Obama's Health Care Policies you can imagine. Just look up this guy "Dick Morris". He's a knucklehead, but you might as well get your feet wet and check him out. He's the kind of nightmare you're going to see.

WE HAVE TO GET ORGANIZED TO FIGHT THESE GUYS. WE CAN'T GO BACK INTO LAZY SLACKERDOM NOW THAT OUR MAN WON. ALL THAT WE FOUGHT FOR AND WORKED FOR WILL BE GONE DUE TO OUR BEING LAZY. WE ARE NOT LAZY. WE ARE SO STRONG WHEN WE WAKE UP AND GET ORGANIZED. WE ARE UNSTOPPABLE!!!!

Come on!!! It was fun getting involved wasn't it? It was fun getting passionate over something bigger than yourself. Let's do it again. Lets get Health Care Reformed so our parents don't have to pay thousands of dollars in premiums when they are in their 80s. Heck, so WE don't have to pay thousands of dollars in our eighties. So we CAN GET the CARE WE NEED WHEN WE ARE SICK instead of some letter that says we are declined due to pre-existing conditions -( so just go die somewhere away from us please.)

Let's not let just any Health Care Reform pass either. A good one. One like what Congress has. Seriously.

YES!!!!! WE CAN!!!! YOU'RE BRIGHT!!! YOU'RE STRONG!!! YOU'RE OH-SO-SMART! HOW ABOUT HEALTHY TOO!!!!!!! DO IT FOR YOU, YOUR KIDS, YOUR PARENTS, YOUR NEIGHBORS, YOUR FRIENDS. GO TO BARACKOBAMA.COM AND THEN ORGANIZING AMERICA AND CALL FOLKS LIKE LAST TIME. WRITE BLOGS, GET BACK IN TOUCH WITH YOUR OLD BUDDIES FROM THE PAST 2 YEARS.

THE TIME IS NOW!!! YES! WE CAN!!! :-D

On the Holocaust Museum Shooting

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:57:42 EDT

Posted by Jesse Lee

The President and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar offer condolences.

President Obama:

I am shocked and saddened by today’s shooting at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. This outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms. No American institution is more important to this effort than the Holocaust Museum, and no act of violence will diminish our determination to honor those who were lost by building a more peaceful and tolerant world.

Today, we have lost a courageous security guard who stood watch at this place of solemn remembrance. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends in this painful time.

Secretary Salazar:

Today, we witnessed an act of violence and hatred in one of our world's most sacred sites of remembrance. This horrible crime took the life of Officer Stephen Tyrone Johns, whose courage in the line of duty saved lives and protected the hallowed halls of the Holocaust Museum. Americans' thoughts and prayers tonight are with Officer Johns’ family.

We are also reminded of the great sacrifices our law enforcement officials, including security guards and the Park Police who protect the National Mall, make every day on our behalf. This tragic act of violence only reaffirms the lessons of peace and human dignity that the Holocaust Museum teaches.

Road To Recovery

Suffolk.New York.Can — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:31:28 EDT

MON, JUNE 8, 11:00 AM EST600,000 Jobs on the Road to RecoveryPosted by Cammie Croft

It’s been a little over 100 days since the Recovery Act was signed by the President. We’ve come a long way –- we’ve created or saved over 150,000 jobs, cut taxes for 95 percent of working families, and made funds available for over 4,000 transportation projects. But while we’ve made progress, we still have a lot more work to do on this road to recovery.

To accelerate our recovery efforts, the Vice President announced the Roadmap to Recovery, ten major projects that will keep more teachers in the classroom, put more cops on our streets, and give more people access to healthcare over the next 100 days.

Fee Tuition to Harvard University

Suffolk.New York.Can — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:09:53 EDT

Harvard University Announcement

Harvard University announced over the weekend that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families will pay no tuition. In making the announcement, Harvard's president Lawrence H. Summers said, "When only ten percent of the students in elite higher education come from families in the lower half of the income distribution, we are not doing enough. We are not doing enough in bringing elite higher education to the lower half of the income distribution."

If you know of a family earning less than $60,000 a year with an honor student graduating from high school soon, Harvard University wants to pay the tuition. The prestigious university recently announced that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families can go to Harvard for free... no tuition and no student loans!
To find out more about Harvard offering free tuition for families making less than $60,000 a year, visit Harvard's financial aid website at: http://www.fao.fas.harvard.edu/ or call the school's financial aid office at (617) 495-1581 .

SEND TO SOMEONE WHETHER THEY CAN USE OR NOT. THEY JUST MIGHT KNOW SOMEONE WHO CAN.

Meeting Results

Suffolk.New York.Can — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:43:30 EDT

Business owners that are apart of our consortium suggested a credit for or the reduction in cost of malpractice insurance. This would reduce the potential for any possible loss in revenue to Doctors. The opposition to change is motivated by greed. It was also suggested that there be more competition between HMOs to drive costs of service down. Preventive services could linclude free clinics for simple ailments such a common cold. The cost for Doctors to see patients with simple health problems is causing a great expense. Companies abilities to keep good staff is predicated on the quality of fringe benefits they are able to provide.

Discussed available RFPs to consider looking for work and trip to Washington to obain support for funding of our recovery ideas to create jobs, improve health care and education for foster children and those in a shelter.

Our President on Values

Suffolk.New York.Can — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:09:06 EDT

President Obama: "The danger is when any country thinks it can impose values on another country"

In his first interview with a British broadcaster, US President Barack Obama has told the BBC that the US cannot impose its values on other countries.

But he insisted that "democracy, rule of law, freedom of speech, freedom of religion" were "universal values".

"These are values that are important, even when it's hard," he said.

Speaking ahead of a trip to the Middle East and Europe, Mr Obama said closing the Guantanamo Bay prison was a way that America could set a good example.

BBC North America Editor Justin Webb, who conducted the interview, says the president chose to speak to the BBC now because his team want to reach the parts of the world the BBC reaches - with a message that is nuanced and thoughtful.

But Mr Obama is not apologising for the actions of the Bush White House, our correspondent adds.

The full interview will be broadcast on the BBC from 0500 BST.

It’s a real life story entitled “MATURED FORCE of a LATINA”

theatre of life — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 14:28:14 EDT

Judge Sotomayor has already captured the confidence of three American Presidents and her manifold experience is waiting to be recognized soon by the wide- minded conversations of the Congress.

Which flag will be tagged over the debates for the real American ideals and institutions?

- Red flag of the cloture or

- Black flag of filibuster or

- Proud flag of the elected representatives of the country?

Who has the difficult task?

- The Congress for the Approval of the right selection for their constituent- service or

- The Latino Candidate who is ready for the public service for all the citizens of all States?

In a war time crisis environment it is so sensible to make the way free for the clear identification of the living constitution, which is continuously making an approach to the promised perfection city but never met it with a finite distance until today.

Judge Sotomayor will soon salute Themis with closed eyes with her new title for the highest Court of the United States of America reinforced by her real life story as a matured force of a Latina.

Please Won't You Be My Neighbor

Tony — Mon, 25 May 2009 17:52:08 EDT

Globalization and the internet are bringing together an international community. Problems are more internernational than ever. Every great nation needs to understand and opperate with this understanding.

Similarly on the internet we can not be running around telling everyone that we are greatest. On the internet like any playground that child is very unpopular. We can work to be the greatest, and always strive for better. The greatest is still to come.

We must approach our problems with love and understanding. We are all neighbors now.

Everyone Loves Barack Obama

Tony — Mon, 25 May 2009 16:00:07 EDT

President Obama thank you for being the fantastic president you are. Although I know that you are the kind of character our country needs, we need someone stronger on civil liberty. The electronic age has caught us off guard. People’s right to privacy is violated continually as part of business. It has left all Americans exposed. I hope that you will pay more mind to our civil liberties in the future. It is what the times call for.

I will always love you President Obama. Unfortunately it is a tragic time to combine the greatest president ever, with a president soft on civil liberties. I will always support you, but my first commitment will always be to our country, and our constitution.

Help For Homeowners

Suffolk.New York.Can — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:38:26 EDT

WASHINGTON, May 20 (UPI) -- Bills to reform the U.S. financial and housing market and to protect U.S. consumers from fraud were signed into law Wednesday by President Barack Obama.

The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act expands an existing $300 billion program that encourages lenders to write down an individual's mortgage if the homeowner agrees to pay an insurance premium. Among other things, the program, set to expire in 2011, would swap out a homeowner's high interest rate for a 30-year fixed loan backed by the Federal Housing Administration.

The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act authorizes $490 million over two years to hire fraud prosecutors, increase enforcement actions and add funds to the Secret Service and Housing and Urban Development Inspector General.

"These landmark pieces of legislation will protect hardworking Americans, crack down on those who seek to take advantage of them, and ensure that the problems that led us into this crisis never happen again," Obama said during the signing ceremony.

U.S. President Barack Obama (R) speaks as Chair of the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board and former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Paul Volcker (C), and Chairman and Founder of Pritzker Realty Group Penny Pritzker (L) listen during a meeting with members of his Economic Recovery Advisory Board in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on May 20, 2009 in Washington. The meeting was to focused on energy and green jobs.

Help To Stop The Lies About Health Care

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sat, 16 May 2009 14:48:02 EDT

Natalie

We knew healthcare reform would face fierce opposition -- and it's begun. As we speak, the same people behind the notorious "swiftboat" ads of 2004 are already pumping millions of dollars into deceptive television ads. Their plan is simple: torpedo healthcare reform before it sees the light of day by scaring the public and distorting the President's approach.

We need the resources to take them head on with an urgent, grassroots campaign to pass real healthcare reform in 2009.

When the swiftboaters flood the airwaves with distortions, we'll flood the streets with volunteers armed with facts. When they send lobbyists to tell Congress to back down, we'll send millions of calls, letters, and stories from real Americans asking them to stand up.

Can you donate $25 or more by midnight Sunday to fight back against these phony attacks and take our message of reform to the American people?

The swiftboaters are once again trying to sell the American people short. As during the election, we deserve a serious conversation -- not fear-mongering and deceit. You and I see the importance of healthcare reform every day. We can't miss this once in a lifetime opportunity to face one of America's greatest challenges head on.

Passing real healthcare reform will be the toughest, most important challenge we've faced together since electing Barack Obama President.

But it's also a big reason we fought so hard to get here. I know that by working together, and speaking with one, determined voice, we can prevail over the cynics and defenders of the status quo. America's families are counting on us to do just that.

Please donate $25 or more to defend healthcare reform today:

https://donate.barackobama.com/defendhealthcare

Thank you,

David Plouffe

Community Service Jobs

Suffolk.New York.Can — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:56:37 EDT

Change.org Launches "Jobs for Change"
Hey Changemakers,

We're excited to announce the launch of a major new initiative called Jobs for Change, which aims to spark a nationwide movement toward careers in the common good.

Over the past few months President Obama has inspired a renewed interest in public service, providing a historic opportunity to mobilize a new generation of Americans to address the major social and environmental problems we face.

Yet there are few resources connecting people interested in social change with careers in service, threatening to limit the potential impact of this new civic spirit. We aim to change that.

We are currently building the largest database of nonprofit, government, and social enterprise jobs on the web and have just hired a team of career advisors to provide daily advice and guidance to help people of all backgrounds find and develop a career in social change. We have also partnered with more than a dozen leading organizations that will give Jobs for Change reach to millions of people interested in deeper civic engagement.

To continue the momentum behind this movement, we need your help. If you share our vision for a world that empowers anyone with passion and dedication to find a career in service, please sign your name here and become an ambassador for Jobs for Change.

Letter From The President

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:38:54 EDT

Subject: Health care news worth sharing
Date: Wed, 13 May 2009 15:10:45 -0500
To: nfowora@msn.com
From: president@messages.whitehouse.gov

Good afternoon,

You are receiving this email because you signed up at WhiteHouse.gov. My staff and I plan to use these messages as a way to directly communicate about important issues and opportunities, and today I have some encouraging updates about health care reform.

The Vice President and I just met with leaders from the House of Representatives and received their commitment to pass a comprehensive health care reform bill by July 31.

We also have an unprecedented commitment from health care industry leaders, many of whom opposed health reform in the past. Monday, I met with some of these health care stakeholders, and they pledged to do their part to reduce the health care spending growth rate, saving more than two trillion dollars over the next ten years -- around $2,500 for each American family. Then on Tuesday, leaders from some of America's top companies came to the White House to showcase innovative ways to reduce health care costs by improving the health of their workers.

Now the House and Senate are beginning a critical debate that will determine the health of our nation's economy and its families. This process should be transparent and inclusive and its product must drive down costs, assure quality and affordable health care for everyone, and guarantee all of us a choice of doctors and plans.

Reforming health care should also involve you. Think of other people who may want to stay up to date on health care reform and other national issues and tell them to join us here:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/EmailUpdates

Health care reform can't come soon enough. We spend more on health care than any country, but families continue to struggle with skyrocketing premiums and nearly 46 million are without insurance entirely. It is a priority for the American people and a pillar of the new foundation we are seeking to build for our economy.

We'll continue to keep you posted about this and other important issues.

Thank you,
Barack Obama

P.S. If you'd like to get more in-depth information about health reform and how you can participate, be sure to visit http://www.HealthReform.gov

Health Care For Women

Suffolk.New York.Can — Wed, 13 May 2009 09:02:33 EDT

Today, in honor of National Women's Health Week, Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and the HHS Office of Health Reform are releasing a report, Roadblocks to Health Care, that shows how our current system is leaving too many women without the care they need. You can watch a special message from Secretary Sebelius about the report by clicking here.

To read the report visit www.HealthReform.gov.

Health Care- The Facts

Suffolk.New York.Can — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:02:57 EDT

http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/Fact_Sheet-Health_Reform_Stakeholders_5-11-09.pdf

Opportunities Available For You

Suffolk.New York.Can — Sat, 09 May 2009 11:08:46 EDT

Friday, May 8th, 2009 at 2:46 pmFrom "Wait and See" to "The Next Opportunity"This morning the April employment numbers were released, showing that our economy lost 539,000 jobs, bringing the total number of jobs lost since this recession began to 5.7 million. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis opened her statement by saying that the numbers "reflect the urgent needs of Americans, and they are the focus of this administration's immediate action and relief." But she closed noting that, "As the comprehensive plan of the administration takes hold, we have begun to see signs of recovery. We've seen the financial system and the housing market stabilize. New jobs are being created as ground has broken on thousands of new infrastructure projects in all 50 states."And so with the tremendous task of turning around the economy on a national scale ongoing, the President announced a new set of programs to help make the task of individuals turning around their own lives a little bit easier. The President made clear that, in reality, fighting unemployment and creating a 21st Century economy nationally would come down individuals finding individual jobs, and better yet find training for the kinds of jobs that would last for decades:Now is the time to put a new foundation for growth in place -- to rebuild our economy, to retrain our workforce, and re-equip the American people. And now is the time to change unemployment from a period of "wait and see" to a chance for our workers to train and seek the next opportunity -- so when that new and better day does come around, our people, our industry, and our entire country are ready to make the most of it.As he often does, the President discussed how the ideas he had in mind related to somebody he knew. In this case it was Maureen Pike, who Maureen lost her job as a physician's receptionist, but kept afloat with unemployment benefits and used Pell Grants to become a registered nurse through community college. The President talked about her example as enabled by unique rules in the state of Maine:But today, far too many Americans are denied that opportunity. Let me just give you an example. Say an unemployed factory worker wants to upgrade his skills to become a mechanic or a technician. In many states, that worker might lose temporary financial support if he enrolls in a training program. And to make matters worse, unemployment might mean he can't afford higher education, and he likely won't qualify for federal help simply because he may have made a decent salary a year ago, before he was laid off.Well, that doesn't make much sense for our economy or our country. So we're going to change it. First, we'll open new doors to higher education and job training programs to recently laid-off workers who are receiving unemployment benefits. And if those displaced workers need help paying for their education, they should get it -- and that's why the next step is to make it easier for them to receive Pell Grants of the sort that Maureen used.I've asked my Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, and my Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, to work closely with states and our institutions of higher learning and encourage them not only to allow these changes, but to inform all workers receiving unemployment benefits of the training programs and financial support open to them. And together, the Department of Education and the Department of Labor have created a new website called opportunity.gov -- I'll repeat that, opportunity.gov -- to help workers discover and take advantage of these opportunities.And together, these changes will increase access to education and opportunity for hundreds of thousands of workers who've been stung by this recession -- people just like Maureen. And like her, many may take advantage of one of America's underappreciated assets -- and that's our community colleges. These schools offer practical education and technical training, and they're increasingly important centers of learning where Americans can prepare for the jobs of the future.And that's also why I'm asking Dr. Jill Biden, a community college professor who's devoted her entire life to education -- and who happens to be married to the Vice President -- to lead a national effort to raise awareness about what we're doing to open the doors to our community colleges.

The Truth About Health Care Reform

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 22:45:40 EDT

Please go to Health Reform.gov and State Your Support

Dear Mr. President,

We strongly support your commitment to comprehensive health reform.

This is not a luxury. The continuing, sharp escalation of health care costs for families, businesses, and government is unsustainable. Reform is imperative.

We believe that health reform must be enacted this year.

Reform is needed to help America’s families struggling with rising costs and those who are losing their insurance. At the same time, real health reform is crucial to keeping American businesses competitive in the world economy and for the country’s long-term economic viability. As our country faces economic challenges, the time for reform is now.

We support health reform that follows these principles:

Protect families’ financial health
Assure affordable, quality health coverage for all Americans
Provide portability of coverage
Guarantee choice of doctors
Invest in prevention and wellness
Improve patient safety and quality of care
End barriers to coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions
Reduce long-term growth of health costs for businesses and government

During these extraordinarily challenging times, we need to put aside past differences and address the health and economic crisis. Our shared interest must come before narrow interests so we can achieve a health system that is affordable and provides high quality for all Americans. We will support your budget with its reserve fund dedicated to achieving health care reform in a fiscally responsible manner. Each of us must be prepared to contribute to achieving this fundamental goal.

By signing this statement we affirm our commitment to work with you and our Congressional leaders to enact legislation this year which provides affordable, high quality coverage for all Americans

Organizing For America Helps Us to Keep Informed

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:45:49 EDT

Donate to help keep information flowing. You can e-mail us about any of your concerns.

he biggest challenges are still ahead, and meeting them will require all of us working together. That's why the President is depending on Organizing for America and people just like you to overcome the critics and the naysayers and to bring lasting change to America. So stay tuned for more ways to get involved -- this is only the beginning.

Please watch the President's remarks, and share the video with friends:

http://my.barackobama.com/100DaysVideo

Thanks for making this moment possible, and for all the victories yet to come.

Mitch

Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America

Business Incubator Meeting Results

Suffolk.New York.Can — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 14:16:28 EDT

Participants Returned Contractual agreement. Business Plan still in developement. Contact made with SBA and Banks about funding oportunities. Efforts made until Stimulus request results are acknowledged. others are still encouraged to participate. Location of Incubator is in New York State Empire Zone.

Community Teachers Willing to Work Summer Teaching Science and Math

Suffolk.New York.Can — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 13:45:35 EDT

Suffolk Community College-Brentwood

Grades K-12

$35.00 Early Enrollment Discount

Cost $290.00 for first child per week

Cost $250.00 each additional child per week

From June 29th-July 31st, 2009

Monday-Friday 9-3 P.M.

For Enrollment Information Call 631-582-6376

or e-mail nfowora@gmail.com

President Obama's Results of 100 Days

Suffolk.New York.Can — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 18:11:21 EDT

Suffolk.New York.Can --

Tomorrow will mark the President's hundredth day in office. A lot of attention will be given to this largely symbolic day, and the truth is that what we do every day after it will be just as important -- if not more. But our accomplishments in this time have been remarkable, and they're having real effects on people and communities throughout the country.

You built the movement that made this possible, and it's up to you to show Americans that real change can happen when ordinary citizens work together.

Explore this interactive map to learn about the progress we've made in the last 100 days and the stories of real Americans whose lives have already been touched. Then spread the word by passing it along to your friends and family.

With the country in crisis, the President took office and acted quickly to restore confidence and stability to our economy. But just as important were the steps we've taken toward building a new foundation for our prosperity, so that we never go back to the system that led us to crisis in the first place.

In just one hundred days, we've made crucial investments to create jobs and improve education, energy, and health care. All of this is a down payment for a new economic vision -- one where skilled workers fuel our economy rather than debt and speculation; one where American leadership on clean energy fuels 21st century innovation; and one where families and businesses are no longer weighed down by crushing health care costs.

Delivering on the promise of change is the reason we built this movement. Now, President Obama is counting on all of us to build support for this foundation and create a lasting recovery for America.

Take a look now at these critical first steps we've taken together and pass it on for others to see:

http://my.barackobama.com/100days

This new direction would not have been possible without you. But our biggest tests are yet to come, and the future is ours to shape. Let's seize this moment together so history will show that, at this defining crossroads, a generation of Americans put their country on the path to long-term security and prosperity.

Thank you,

David Plouffe

The Republicans on Health Care

Suffolk.New York.Can — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:34:17 EDT

Shows how opposition to President Obama's health care plan will partly be funded by owner of large Florida owned health clinics - big surprise - profits might be effected if people get to chose their health care plan!

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0409/21428.html

Health Care For All Americans- Help For Small Businesses

Suffolk.New York.Can — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 14:14:11 EDT

Small business is at the epicenter of America’s health insurance crisis. Across the country, hard-working small business owners are struggling to pay the skyrocketing cost of health insurance for their employees and many are finding that they just cannot do it.

Today, the Department of Health and Human Services released The Bottom Line: Health Reform and Small Business. The new report highlights key facts about the impact of high health care costs on small businesses including:

Nearly one-third of the uninsured – 13 million people – are employees of firms with less than 100 workers.
In the past two years, more than half of small businesses that offered coverage reported switching to plans with higher out-of-pocket costs in response to rising premiums. Another third switched to a plan that covered fewer services, and 12% dropped coverage entirely.
Among small businesses that offer coverage, 40% report spending more than 10% of their payroll on health care costs.

You can read the report by clicking here or by visiting www.HealthReform.gov.

The Real Report on Our Presidents first 94 Days

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 21:03:30 EDT

Our President and his Cabinet are doing a fantastic job.

Our So Called news media daily trumpet the failures of our new administration. We are led to believe this is a non-stop stream of defilement of America, lack of bipartisanship (a word clearly beyond the vocabulary of GW) and on and on. The usual lies, distortion and fairy tales bombard us by the hour.

I like many of the millions who sweat blood to bring about this revolution are disgusted with some of the President's appointment and actions. Steps that seem to be clearly contrary to his campaign promises. I may be an idealist, but I refuse to step in with the slimy right in throwing rocks at him. The right is opposed to every action, we are concerned about a few, a huge difference! I'm proud to stick with my idealism. No way am I going to give up our victory. Consider what the world would be like with McCain and friends running the sho w.

I've always believed that the real winner in the last election was not Barack, it was the millions of people he energized to create this new era. He attracted millions of people new to this process. Millions of us devoted herculean energy to bring this about. We won and it's time we started acting as winners. Sadly the Congress is tone deaf to any populace sound, we are drowned about by the kaching of the cash machines. Far too many of our elected democrats wallow in the slime and line up with the republican automatons. So many of our democrats are habitual losers, fearful of every rumble from the right.

We need to keep speaking out for the battle we won.

One needed information source that is so far nonexistent as far as I know is a simple web site of the hundreds of accomplishments in these first few days. The many reversals of Bush destruction, the return to la w and decency in many corners of government. I'd like to start with the accomplishments and build from there. Does this exist? Fox, Fox-A, Fox-C and Fox-N maintain a running list of "failures". The truth once exposed trumps lies hands down.

I know that women's health, stem cell research, talking to the "enemy" are emotionally charged issues untouchable by the MSM. Let's use the independent media to proudly tell the truth.

Where is the list?

bill

Bill Sorem
Just One Voice
Listening for the Chorus
base 952-938-8754 cell 952-239-1169

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Thomas D. Spainhour to USA.CAN
show details 4:58 PM (3 hours ago) Reply

> Where is the list?

There are some things at whitehouse.gov:

PRESIDENTIAL ACTIONS
OFFICIAL STATEMENTS
PRESS RELEASES

Business Incubator

Suffolk.New York.Can — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 21:53:37 EDT

Tuff times thens to bring people together. Ten current and some new businessowners have agreed to operate under one roof at a New York State Empire Zone location. Efforts to come together across America is necessary to assure business success and create jobs.

Clips on Torture

Suffolk.New York.Can — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 17:54:56 EDT

http://digg.com/politics/Republicans_to_Go_Nuclear_over_torture_memos

Just a sample of the type of attacks made on the Administration. Good writers are needed to assist with responses. They are fighting for you and me.

Clips on Torture

A Human Soul is in dire straits and requires our URGENT collective help...

AbsoluTILLY — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 14:32:55 EDT

A Human Soul is in dire straits at the moment and requires imediate help. All acting as one, we could make an actual difference in this person's life.

If you ever wanted your life to count for something, if you EVER wanted to make an actual difference in someone's life, HERE IS YOUR CHANCE:

http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?topic=12432&uid=57698797251#/group.php?gid=57698797251

Appropriating and Recontextualizing Google Image Search Results

maya escobar — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 17:26:01 EDT

Part 1 of an article I wrote for jewishinstlouis.org

Every art student learns about the fair use principle, granting us permission to use any image in our artwork as long as we transform it so that it conveys new meaning. But beyond that all-encompassing definition, we don’t know what transgressions, if any, we are actually committing.

Recently in the news is the preemptive lawsuit artist Shepard Fairey filed against the Associated Press. According to Fairey the AP threatened to sue him unless he pays royalties for the image that he used as source material for his now famous campaign poster of Barack Obama. Fairey argues that he is protected by the fair use principle. He claims that his intention was not to reproduce any particular image, but instead was to capture a specific gaze representative of the ideas of hope and change.

In an interview on NPR, Fairey declared he was going forward with this suit on behalf of all artists, the thousands of artists that created their own campaign images in the same grassroots manner, pulling images from the web in support of the message of hope, change and a new administration in Washington.

screen shot of: first page of google image search results for "Barack Obama"

I am fascinated by Fairey’s implication that the process of appropriating and re-contextualizing Google image search results might be considered a grassroots action. As an artist, I frequently use images that that I find on Google. Like Fairey suggested, my motivation for using these images is to highlight the search itself, not the derivative image.

Perhaps then, these cyber Robin Hoodian actions—using and transforming Google image search results—are capable of changing the structures that control the dissemination of information. After all, the order that information appears in Google searches is determined by the amount of people searching any given topic. And as a result of the Fairey’s appropriation, his campaign poster may be forever linked to Obama’s presidency.

email from President Obama

Obama’s popularity can be credited to his skillfully constructed presidential campaign that effortlessly linked his name to hope. I was quick to jump onto Obama’s online campaign message of hope. Like many others, I subscribed to his twitter, facebook, and YouTube pages. I now get weekly emails from him and I even have a blog on his site…

Solution Clustering In Desperate Times

Patrick Fahey — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 12:11:10 EDT

"I'm asking you to believe. Not just about my ability to bring change in Washington...I'm asking you to believe in yours." Barack Obama

One of our Obama friends wrote a GREAT comment: "Eight years Bush was a blessing in disguise". WHAT?! It sure gives one pause, eh? But what an insight. It DOES take things getting SO bad for all of us to become galvanized on solutions. Obama's call to service was the perfect antidote. It allows us to become part of the solution, to overcome the ubiquitous fear of doom we hear everywhere these days. American Perestoika, here we go!

Are you afraid that "we won't get back to the way things were"? That's just part of our "transitional myopia". It's time to refocus our vision! Why return to a system of unregulated exploitation? Let's remake our social economy to serve OUR needs. We can do this! Let's get energized and empowered to help our multi-tasking problem-solver president to change the unterbau of America. As Rachel Madow says, this country needs a SCRUB-RINCE-REPEAT many times over! But with so much to do SIMULTANEOUSLY, how do we go about thinking this through--without following a butterfly off a cliff?

Rather than taking things on one problem at a time, lets think in terms of mutually self-correcting solution clusters, as Barack Obama is trying to do. "Mutual self-correction" is the key idea. By solving one problem, other seemingly unrelated problems are solved simultaneously. Pie-In-The Sky? Look closer.

Lucky for us, our new and thoughtful president realizes that we can't solve our multi-tiered crisis one dimension at a time. Obama frequently clarifies that the auto industry was felled NOT just merely by failing to manufacturing optimal and efficient cars, but by having to provide health care to its workers. They couldn't afford to retool to close the quality gap with Toyota/Honda AND provide health care! If we had a nationalized single-payer health plan, Detroit's next generation of cars would optimal, efficient, affordable vehicles. SIMULTANEOUSLY, the monthly cost of health care would become affordable for all. That solves two crises at once. A solution cluster at work!

The other REALLY BIG TASK? Getting HMOs out of the private sector. The GOAL:to trash the system of health care VS profits--a dumb idea started by the criminal mind of Bob Haldeman in the Nixon White House in 1972! Question: How do we transition the private health care system to a public system? That requires research. Can we just pull the plug without a Wall Street plunge, massive resistance by Republicans and TV pundits asking all the wrong questions? (laugh track here!) We all need to do the research, because even Team Obama hasn't got that solved. Barack provided the stimulus money for just this purpose--ending private heath care. We need to help Obama with the political will and support by flooding the White House and Congress with emails and street demonstrations.

Now if we can just convince enough non-self destructive Republicans in Congress to go along! Their own constituencies will think they're part of the solution! Filibustering good ideas would become impossible.

See what I mean by multi-tiered approach? We have no choice but to multi-task our way out of this mess. We can begin to ENVISION the complicated task ahead, break it down, and develop the requisite language for real solutions. To paraphrase Albert Einstein, we must "make the incomprehensible comprehensible".

The next tier? To publicize these ideas and overcome the FOX/CNBC right-wing echo chamber who will red-bate every good idea under the sun. Take a deep breath! We can do this!

Let's pass these ideas around to others, talk to TEAM OBAMA about it, and monitor the path they are taking. This is only one of several solution clusters that we need to "float" in the public mind. We all need to help Obama think this through. Let's believe in OUR ability to figure things out, not just rely on TEAM OBAMA. Let him know we're thinking and doing and changing along with him! Just maybe, we have ideas as good or better they theirs! Obama will love that our TVs were broken--so we were thinking!

Thanks for reading. Love to "hear" your thoughts. Comments are duly welcome. Sincerely,

Patrick Fahey,math teacher & problem solver, SF

obama tweet- how a new generation gets their information

maya escobar — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:59:42 EST

click on images to watch video on youtube or you can see it here on my website mayaescobar.com

The Official Artist Movement for Change Project

The Artist — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:41:16 EST

At this special point in history this is a call to artist to participate in a collective work to share a world wide vision of the change we need. Inside of each Artist is a point of view a glimpse of the new world. Will you share your point of view to this colaborative work.

Please comment on the idea.

To participate in this project simply go to my page and add yourself as a friend and you will recieve further information.

Thank You

The Artist

THE MAGIC TOUCH of the AMERICAN DESTINY

theatre of life — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:20:00 EST

“... because living our values doesn’t make us weaker, it makes us safer and it makes us stronger.”

President Barack OBAMA

Well matching with the stripes of the proud flag behind him, so straightforward and in plain sight but revolutionary in practice escorted by the courtesy of the twinkling Lady Star and the courtly Eagle- Valour.

Magic touch of the Skiny Kid with a Funny Name once deprived off an helicopter, maintaining the exact nature of the Presidential Address with added value, delivered true constituency for the American people, who trusted his opinions as their own.

The President of United States has involved a new dynamic that engaged the audience of the people, not only in the format of celebrity-led reality but also in the format of the regenerated- fresh opportunity of an ordinary reassuring that they don’t fall out.

The Chief Executive of the United States of America for the first time in the world history, involved the Public Audition in the format of digital challanges such as recovery.com, clickable any time to simulate the feel of virtual auditicy, promoting the reform of the ordinary Americans of any public driven application. A website allowing the transparancy never seen before is a historic undertaking.

The magic touch of remodelling the health care with the mission, striving for colloborative excellence keeping the old alive, challenging the system to meet the expectation of the people with hope for recovery.

The ones who feature the Chief Executive with broad perspective will find the commitments of the promised high quality health care in the inner city surely.

Money and manpower for the performance on health care will start from the fix star. The star called hope and prosperity.

Genuine care and attention given to the health of the ordinary American citizens means the American prosperity. It is not a threat to the prevailing market nor a question for the choice capitalist economy.

Healthy citizens for the better America means restoring the American prosperity.

Americans will bear the non-profits of the health care reform and read it not anymore as a different story, not with controversial subjects but as sponsoring the incentives of good citizenship.

The magic touch of recovery to heal the economy and get it well on the path is generous on all aspects to meet the aspirations of the society and not with the chains of formula but also with the tastes of the minds of inner chain.

It’s time now for the people to be conscious of spending their money just as they do before casting their vote.

The magic of this Magic Touch will find the equilibrium between the fantastic power of transition and the extant resolution.

Obama and the New Spirit of Empathy Group

Edwin Videoman — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 16:33:33 EST

Barack Obama is leading a movement based on values and at the core of this is the value of empathy. Barack talks about empathy and the importance of 'standing in other peoples shoes', in many of his speeches (I've collected 50 so far). Empathy is the most basic value he ran on and he says the country has an 'empathy deficit' that needs to be filled. We are forming an Empathy Values Group to build on Obama's call to address the empathy deficit.

As part of this empathy movement, we are also putting together a video of his talking about this topic to give it some context and promote this foundational progressive value. Let's help fill the empathy deficit by making people more aware of the topic. This is a collaborative project and we invite you to take part. See.

Barack Obama and a New Spirit of Empathy (rough cut 1) (1 hr 15 min)
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6504935098489252112
A Chronological Video of Barack on Empathy - Compiled from about 30 of Barack's speeches and interviews, etc on the topic of empathy.

Here's a review of the video: Hi Edwin, It is truly wonderful that you and others have grasped the brass ring of the progressive movement by highlighting the core issue of Empathy. I now see that everything about the rising of Barack Obama and the revolution in America is based on this principle. Thank you, thank you for your effort and the timely reminder to me of what is really important. It's easy to get lost in the dust that is being raised by so many who sincerely want to see change and see it quickly. But it is crucial to remember why we are being called in this time in history to change. You are exactly right, it is Empathy. Warmly, Terri Jan 28, 2009.

UNITED STATES of WASTE-LAND

theatre of life — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 02:33:48 EST

Friendship is required not only among Americans but also with the others in the world.

Just like this, friendship among the other nations are also important.

Depositing the US- waste in the other countries will not be the ultimate answer to the problem.
I believe there should be international zones determined by the will of all the people of the world and create an international waste-land.

This will solve the current problem of the waste and satisfy everybody sharing common responsibilities.

It will also create a new infra structure industry offering wide variety of jobs.

United States of Waste-Land can only be created only with the leadership of the United States of America.

LINCOLN’s AURA versus Copperhead RESISTANCE

theatre of life — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 13:54:43 EST

On the day he was born, did Abraham cry for the heavy tasks of his fate ?

How and when has he developped the conception of the idea to form a nucleus of Universal Union without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or color?

Did he reckon by the Anouncement of Emancipation Proclamation that humanright compromises cost human lifes just to achieve from virtually impossible into realistically possible?

Could he anticipate that the copperhead snake could strike without warning?

Did he peceive the felicity of today with mourning in Gettysburg?

There were 7500 dead soldiers and several thausand horses in the Battlefield of Gettysburg and many anti-war and anti- Lincoln sentiments in the Country.

These horses were evolved over 55 million years. They had well developped sense of balance and very strong fight or flight instinct.

Was it a yearling or colt? Was it a filly or more?

They had surely companionship attachments to these soldiers of Gettysburg. They were surely engaged in the same mental challanges and sacrified their lives for this social system identification.

Does anybody reflect to show Pfledge also to these fallen horses and horses and men interaction in Gettysburg?

May the day you were born be blessed Abraham.

Gulsen Saray

US CITIZENS AS ENDANGERED SPECIES IN WORLD

theatre of life — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:26:14 EST

Dear Governor Kaine,

I am a non American citizen in bureaucracy reaching out to you miles away beyond oceans indeed from the midst of central Anatolia.

You can indeed consider me a virtual citizen having a great emphatic approach for the American people.

I have some moral obligations for the world and therefore consequently to support Obama- Biden Administration because it is also my desire that America regains its strenght again with the binding principles of the founding Fathers of its own.

As US Senator ROBERT C. BYRD said :

"The Senate is larger than the sum total of its 100 members. When the duly elected Representatives of the people gather in the Senate chamber, they become much more than the combined intellects, talents, and idiosyncracies of 100 individuals. They become the living, breathing manifestation of the vision of the Framers -- the guardians of the spirit and the soul of the sovereign people of this nation. "

I am confident that the Obama- Biden Administration has gathered the best talented minds of America.

I am also confident that the prepared economic stimulus plan has been reviewed many times but yet open to many comments just as the President Obama said no plan is perfect.

I would have surely produced some conceptual ideas and direct practical solutions about the new economic recovery plan if I have had the whole informative minutes of the meetings on my own table.

Putting the American people back to work is a very good step to begin with, before it is too late to put them into the category of "endangered species" of the wild life of the world, for "Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" still entitle the people of America a separate and equal station till today.

It is not because I have any demand from the US Government but because my own spirit and soul has been trained to think productive along with the best minds as a sovereign individual without any mental reservation or a purpose of evasion.

I strongly believe as a technical person that devoting new innovations to the energy policy and investing into the new energy ressources will progress the world standards and the US technology will surely help the enegy demands of other nations.

Therefore I support the Obama- Biden Stimulus Plan.

Sincerely yours,

Gulsen SARAY

Civil Engineer

Survival of fittest with hope and faith

theatre of life — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 18:06:50 EST

The power of the word is like the power of the legendary sword of EXCALIBUR.

EXCALIBUR's blade was engraved with words ;

One side were the words "take me up", and on the other side "cast me away"

If used as a sword of peace it meant for knighting as opposed to battle.

It could only be performed by the true and rightous ones with pure heart and mind and a blessed soul.

The protection of Divine Providence since the Decleration of Independence needed the blessing of the people, by which the true nature of democracy could be preserved and protected.

The President as a Chief of State, The President as Leader of the Nation, The President as Chief Executive, The President as Commander of Chief

The President Barack OBAMA

has been blessed by the people.

has been granted by the power of the word.

May he use the power for many years ahead for the people of America and for the noble causes of the World.

Recycling in Nevada

Carol Patterson — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 16:36:57 EST

Now that China is not buying our recyclables, what are we going to do...I'm separating and driving my recyclables for storage to a disheartened center, Nevada Recycling, that knows it will close down any week now and we all don't have any real discussion going on about this problem...nor about the lack of manufacturing with recyclables right here in our country...what are we going to do when these places close down and my recyclables wind up in the landfill that I efforted to keep free of it ?

The Power Of Change...

EsquireUK — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 08:22:23 EST

Tuesday, 13th January 2009

Washington, D.C.

"I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to...it belongs to you." - President Elect Barack Obama

www.change.com

A star-studded array of uniquely talented artists and award-winning performers are coming together in celebration of our nation's 44th President, the Honorable Barack Obama. By bringing together such an incredible variety of entertainers, the Latino Inaugural Gala will be one of the most memorable inaugural celebrations of the 56th Presidential Inauguration. Get your tickets today so you don't miss out on this once in a lifetime opportunity!

http://latinoinauguralgala2009.org/

Please join the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI), the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute (CHLI), Democratic National Committee Hispanic Caucus, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), Voto Latino, Latino elected officials and community leaders from across the country, as well as Latino celebrities to celebrate a night of history-in-the-making. Hispanic voices were heard in unprecedented numbers in this presidential election. The Latino community united in a unique way – and it is coming together on Sunday, January 18th, to once again celebrate this historic election. We hope you will be a part of it.

www.change.com

A Time to Nourish Ourselves with the Hot Interplay of Ideas

Joseph — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:55:33 EST

I grew up being educated about why ours was the most hopeful system, because it was under the sway of human decency, common sense and imagination, and not the urges of the powerful. Between a Catholic school —the lessons of which resonate with me more as philosophy, the quest for understanding and fellowship and an ethical approach to citizenship— and a family of Republicans —the strictures of which resonate more in me as a lesson about the virtues and the pitfalls of caution and the vice and convenience of a narrow focus—, I came to understand that American democracy was an epic struggle against history, in hopes of bettering the condition of the individual human being, and securing a just and open society against tyranny and its wasting of vital energies.

I had never felt like a political being, as a child, though my grandfather held office in New Jersey and my upbringing did instill in me a lasting social consciousness. I can recall the feeling of a thrill running through me when I saw in Bill Clinton a president who worked for the people, with committed intellectual passion, and who included us, or made an effort to appear to count the people as part of the work of governing. Maybe it was the first real instance of the Democratic approach my young consciousness had been able to witness, and the experience helped to fix a meditative, philosophical mind, interested in ecology and the possibility of justice in human society, on a set of values in political action: defend the defenseless, struggle against oppressors, and let each person choose the best life possible, which should, ideally, entail the chance to build that life from one's own vision and energies.

It had never seemed clear to me that freedom implied a negation of the ethical bond to others, and it worried me that so many genuinely radical principles, negating the social contract on which I think all successful democracies are based, were taking root as the latter Bush rose from obscurity, heading into the 2000 campaign. I think it is hardly an original observation to note that between the procedural fiasco of the 2000 election and the first year of George W. Bush's presidency, it was as if we had been nudged by some remorseless antagonistic force into a twilight-zone America, where all the dark projections that we were taught to associate with the fear of Soviet world dominance, were becoming pet projects of mainstream agencies in our government. "Total Information Awareness" and the "USA PATRIOT Act" were just two examples. The Constitution was becoming the adversary, a suspicious, revolutionary text that would only serve to dilute the power of the new set of arrogant hands urging the wheel of state away from what we used to proudly call the common values of American democracy.

In the year 2000, Al Gore made a desperately difficult choice, and opted to withdraw from remaining avenues of contest and support the integrity of the Constitutional system, by honoring the verdict of the Supreme Court with regard to Florida. Instead of further legal challenges or calling for the impeachment of one or more Justices, instead of calling his supporters into the streets, Gore bet on the virtues of process and carried out his duties, counting the votes of Florida for his opponent. It was an act of devotion to the fragility of the democratic process, and to the faith that the rule of law and the government by the people, would prevail, in time.

I think in many ways, I was drawn into poetry, philosophy and my love of language, by the degree of poetry and philosophy I had early-on learned were a part of the cultural landscape of our democracy, how great words artfully rendered revealed truths and how those words had summoned and focused the humanity of a continent to move for liberation, time and again.

In 2004, when I saw Barack Obama address the Democratic National Convention, it was the first time I had seen any political figure so infused with this deep historic current of poetry, philosophy, and brilliantly humane rhetoric, so exhibiting the hope, faith and fearless devotion to the idea of American democracy, to the aspiration inherent in that idea. It was a moment whose resonance, in combination with a growing grassroots pro-democracy movement, is now deservedly incalculable. With the unflappable poise of humanitarian principle, indignant about the poisoning of our public discourse, and serious about serving, Obama reminded us that in the depths of our humanity, we retain, at all times, the urge to distinguish between right and wrong, and to apply our energies to bettering the general condition of the world.

I was living in Europe, working in the Spanish language, talking to people who had fled repressive political systems in other parts of the world, or who had seen such a system choking Spanish society for decades, and receiving critiques and good wishes from all quarters, from the 10th of February, 2007, when I began asking everyone I knew to spend a little time with Barack Obama's announcement speech, on the steps of the old State House in Springfield. No other document, as far as I was concerned, so ably expressed what I felt was my homeland, the fundamental grace and potential good of a place we feel proud of, but don't flaunt, the nation whose icons are foundational ideas and whose revolutionary spirit still lives in us, latent, waiting to take up the challenges of reform and ingenuity, humanism and public discourse, that come in times of historic upheaval.

I was often told, as I had been so many times before, that I was too idealistic for believing Obama could defeat the Republican machine, or the Democratic machine, for that matter. My well-meaning European friends would tell me, as if advising a lost soul, he's too much the poet, too much an idealist, that America is not evolved enough to elect a visionary. And, he's black. America could not be evolved enough to elect an African American, I was endlessly told. And I would say with confidence, ever more sure, that I know they've seen disappointment, corruption and debasement in their politics, that they feel betrayed on a human level by what our government had been doing, but that I know the heart of my country, and I trust that we are ready to do great things, and it's impossible not to recognize the hunger that is everywhere across our culture, for something smarter, better, more compassionate, more effective, for able leadership that manifests the virtues we like to see in ourselves.

I found that at every level, even in one-on-one conversations on other continents, we Americans, or maybe the people of the world generally, are engaged in a fierce struggle against cynicism. It became clearer to me that mayybe it's not about cynics versus idealists, but that those laboring to infect every corner of our political culture with the logic of force and the desolate attitudes of cynicism, were in fact victims of cynicism, already fallen, and that our struggle was not against "the cynics" but against those unfortunate people who had fallen into the moral bankruptcy of cynicism, embracing its flawed logic and its false promises.

American history is full of grave deviations from our ideals, but is also a story of transcendent progress, in service of which we continually open our society, ever further, in search of a more just, more humane, more philosophically progressive and democratic society. We answer challenges, and thanks to the devotion and poetry of as rare a voice as Barack Obama's, we were awakening to the fact that our most perilous challenge was here at home, at the helm, that we were facing a crisis of self-fashioning, in which we could cripple or empower ourselves and future generations.

I'm not the only person whose eyes welled up in joy and faith on the night of November 4, 2008. My staunch Republican father, for example, a vehement McCain supporter, but a now-and-again critic of his party's leadership, told me he could not help being overcome by the beauty and human accomplishment of the moment, that he was proud of his country and that seeing the Rev. Jesse Jackson reduced to tears, at what must have seemed an almost impossible and amazing overturning of historic injustices, moved him deeply.

For me, Barack Obama's inauguration is both a restoration —to our nation's transcendent character of hope and idealism, of confident ingenuity and capacity for great and human vision— and a surpassing of global resonance. It means that people can again find communion in civics, in civility, in unabashed hopes and in the work of manifesting our ideals, always just a little better than the best of us, but always worth reaching for; it means we can find common cause in those "better angels of our nature".

To me, this inauguration marks the beginning of a time in which we will be consistently driven to realize the best of what we are as a political culture, motivated by the constant reminder of one of our most transformative historic achievements. Back in the United States, having returned in hopes of being able to contribute somehow to making this moment more likely, at work on my own projects of expression and innovation, I feel as if I have really come home for the first time to the country of my origins, to the rich earth of a place where the deepest roots and the furthest extensions of my own true self, find nourishment in the hot interplay of public ideas and the real possibility of working together to find the right approach, and be the solutions our times demand of us.

On an arm being borne.

paulec — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 18:30:18 EST

"In a dozen uses of 'bear', nowhere is the meaning closed or hidden, even to 'bear a grudge' is something seen by its bearer. To carry in view is to (hope) to scare off adversary; but is there a Second Amendment 'right' to conceal or hide 'arms'?"
I posted this question about the word as well at change.gov. Thank you again, and HNY!

Econ 3.5

paulec — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 11:45:31 EST

One has a menial, mundane, fair paying job five, maybe five and a half days a week. Is there a way that this person may have 3 days at decent wage, which allows another (who has no job) a similar opportunity to have then four days off a labor that is not their favorite? I believe part of this idea is that with those 4 days a person will be able to work something constructive and possibly arrive at an entrepreneurial situation or productive function: all sorts of arts and sciences to increase happiness and the general social peace and welfare.

I am visual artist writing far outside field, but will post this in change.gov anyway. Thank you.

Warren, War, BailOut, and our Wonderful Nation

AngelVision — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 07:56:33 EST

Today I wake up to see that I didn't get what I wanted for christmas, which is and always will be love and peace. I don't understand the continuing drama that plays out with Obama, who has always been firm about nodrama. I love this man with all my heart, not because he has done anything yet, but I can see all that he will rally us all to do.

I really wish the republicans would let it rest because it will not divert from there own shame. Speaking of shame Rev. Jesse Jackson should be ashamed, to be so green with envy and get the Gov. Blagojevich involved with this transisiton of President Obama. Shame on those living in the LGBT that continue to make a 3 minute inovation a huge rally to be bashing our next President before his first day. I'd shame the press too for the swim suit picture, but admit I liked it.

With all the woes of our world, the united states on the economic verge of collapse, our country still has this US vs THEM mentality that I guess I will never understand. We are all one in connection, and that is why no one will push the button first, because it will end our world and all mankind. We went to war, or was tricked into war but what is done is done. We can't keep fighting amongst our selves without seeing a global down fall. We don't have to agree, but why do we have to have continue to push our views down other peoples throat, when we all know that it doesn't bring us anywhere but further apart.

I wonder why it is so hard just to have some Peace on Earth. Doesn't everyone want this?

I wonder why people want to play eachother and treat us all like we are in a game of chess instead of goodwill. It saddens the earth and what ever god you worship or don't worship, do you think man should continue this game of give and take take take?

I blog here today after reading a piece about the RNC and a snow man song. My first reaction was cyber space screaming "GROW UP!" My goodness. I mean I can't beleive that adults actually behave this way, and I want to shame them all for knowing better, yet not doing better. Its not funny at all. We continue to have a world apart, and look what that gets... no peace.

This election has inspired hope in me. Our President-elect has given me something to beleive in, probably saved my life in some ways. As this year has passed I feel blessed that we were going in that direction but for the last six weeks, those who can't just let it be an easy transition, put more and more on what already is a total error in choice of the CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.

Thank goodness that this new year begins in less than a week, I am so PSYCHED, and still going to be inspired by all of you and I still beleive that it can happen. We've come so far, already.

Love and Peace

Stats down From a 10 to a 1

AngelVision — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 07:13:08 EST

When I signed on to mybarackobama, I never realized that they were still keeping a profile score. It was sad to see that I slipped passed the 10 mark, which I held on to since this website gave us the numbers.

I signed on here everyday, during the election. Used the phone bank, signed up for events, donating when ever I could and would read every story from the community blog and posted to the blog, rambling mostly. I left my comment on other blogs, who were not rambling.

Today with a 1 status, I wanted to say a thank you to all of those who kept working to help Obama win this election. I will try to keep my ramblings short, but because of all of you and President - elect Barack Obama, I have a very special story to share.

Since 1997, every year I get an angel ornament for our christmas tree. The angel represents my mother who died 11 years ago. My son who is now 9 years old, never met mom, but he knows about our tradition and it is a very special one for our family. I have been sick lately, and not able to get that angel this year for the tree. My son elementary school had a Hoiliday Store for the children to buy gifts to their parents. So I gave my son a few dollars, and told him to remember his father... That afternoon he came home and told me he had a surprise for me., he had not remembered his father, but used the money to purchase the most beautiful angel bell, i ever did see. I know it was only a couple of bucks but it was so moving.

Why do I post it here? Because that angel ornament was a bigger gift than what anyone might expect from a nine year old boy with golden hair and big blue eyes. My son chose it because he thought she looked like President - elect's First Lady, Michelle Obama., Yes she was of color, and I cried tears of joy when I heard my child tell me why he picked it out for our tree.

Folks, my son does not know the difference in skin color. He is 9 years old. We are united by our love and hopes for all races. With such prejudice that still exist, my own prayers have been answered that i have raised a child to be so loving and accepting. And I know it is because of all of you and especially because of the president elect Barack Obama.

THANK YOU!

Love and Peace

Inauguration Housing

Diviya — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 22:53:47 EST

I have access to a home in Gaithersburg, MD 20879 available during mid-January to February. Perfect for Inauguration! Red line subway is Shady Grove - 25 miles to heart of DC. You can get to the metro station without a car (bus across the street), and be in DC via metro in ~35-40mins.

Its a 3 bdrm, full basement, and 3.5 bath townhome. Make me an offer!

together we hope

maya escobar — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 02:53:41 EST

Article from the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
'Hope' springs anew for Washington University grad students

November 19, 2008 -- Carianne Noga, a graduate student of art at Washington University, ties tags of hope onto a sculpture outside the University City Post-Office. Noga and fellow student Maya Escobar started soliciting people's hopes to place on the sculpture. (Christian Gooden/P-D) By Margaret Gillerman ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 11/29/2008

UNIVERSITY CITY — Georgia O'Keeffe found inspiration in the light and shapes of New Mexico.

Mary Cassatt found hers in mothers and children.

Maya Escobar and Carianne Noga, two graduate students at Washington University's Sam Fox School of Art and Design, found inspiration for their latest project from the long lines on Election Day at a Ben and Jerry's ice cream shop in the Loop.

There, on the sidewalk outside the shop, which was giving away scoops of ice cream to voters, the two women felt excitement and hope among voters. They said they found that same feeling across the street in the long line of voters waiting to vote at the Loop polling place.

"We wanted to continue that moment and not let it peak out," Noga said.

Before the polls closed, they had begun to create their "I hope…" project.

They first staked out a site: outside the University City Post Office at 561 Kingsland Avenue.

They then provided people with bright red tags and paint markers for them to write down their hopes for a better future.

The tags then are affixed to a permanent lattice wood sculpture already on site outside the Post Office.

"As difficult as it can be sometimes to voice our wishes and dreams, it can be strengthening," the artists say in explaining their mission. "We can be reminded of the rest of the world outside our own immediate concerns. In this period of great change and near infinite possibilities, it is time for us to voice our hopes."

While the project is for all people, Escobar said it holds special meaning for young people.

"This is our moment to make a difference for our communities," Escobar said. "We need to be aware — of our national situation, of the economy."

Many of the hopes expressed — most recorded anonymously — so far are noble and universal: "I hope for world peace" and "My hope is that hate is no longer."

Some of the hopes are personal. "I hope to not fear death," wrote one.

Others have a distinctly political bent: "I hope we get out of Iraq and don't go to war with Iran." And some are just fun, like the person hoping for "chocolate cake for dessert ..."

A University City police officer named Hope — Reginald Hope — shared with them his own hope: for safety for police officers. A fellow officer was killed while on duty near the Loop last month.

Washington University Chancellor Mark Wrighton gave his hope and "wishes for better health and greater prosperity for all."

The artists also are encouraging people to submit their hopes online at togetherwehope.com.

[click here for full story]

PLEASE VISIT HTTP://TOGETHERWEHOPE.COM AND SHARE YOUR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE

Thanksgiving

AngelVision — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:58:39 EST

I had forgotten my blog space here since President-elect Obama won the election.

I just want to remind all what we have to be thankful as we sit and celebrate our Thanksgiving Holiday. I know its cliche to say count our blessings, but when we think about the past 18 months and what we have done to make history, our country is our biggest blessing. Yes its bad on all corners of the world, but we have so much to be thankful for, especially for the new President & Vice President. I have not looked forward to entering the new year and to the day its all official, than I have this winter!

May all of you feel as blessed as I do and Have a Thankful Thanksgiving Day.

Love & Peace

BTW, not sure it is a good pick for Secretary of State especially if the constitution makes it illegal to do so regarding the salary law.. Perhaps Senator Clinton can go into the job without a salary?

White House Dream Team .US

i am rasa — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 20:45:43 EST

I have applied to be in charge of the White House Basketball Court where the Dream Team will be meeting for the next four years or more. Join the Dream Team as play begings January 20th 2009.

And when the Dream Team isn't meeting I have applied to be on the board of the Peace Institute, time we make a real peace with the natives, and work our way outward from the heart of reality.

Wednesday's features - buttons and bumper stickers, solar panels and appointments

NewsObama.org — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 13:42:20 EST

A few featured stories this mid-week from around the web:

For those that can't get enough .... - awake at Barack Obama NOW! points to Going.com's amazing collection of Obama campaign buttons showing that interest in the wide range of activity in the art and design for Obama community is not about to slow down
Curses, Foiled Again? Hardly - Open Left makes the case that while the Lieberman vote was dissapointing, it came during what was otherwise a pretty good couple of weeks for progressives.
Erin Medlicott: Pres-Elect Obama Names Eric Holder U.S. Attorney General - a quick bio of the next Attorney General
Lieberman's Half-Removed McCain Bumper Sticker - Lieberman denies having half removed his McCain for president bumper sticker, but whoever did it provided a pretty telling metaphor for the no longer a democrat, but I can still caucus with them Senator
Paul Loeb: KEEP THE WHITE HOUSE DRAPES: BRING BACK THE SOLAR PANELS - some good ideas on greening the transition to the White House

And, it is worthing pointing to a few compelling reads from the NYT Op-Ed today, all of which are in the "most-emailed" list:

Let Detroit Go Bankrupt - Mitt Romney makes the case for a "managed bankruptcy" rather than a bail-out of the auto industry
Thomas Friedman and Maureen Dowd each discuss the advantages and disadvantages of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State
David Brooks - has a less than cheery piece about how bad it is really going to get for the soon to be "formerly middle class" in the coming years

And if all that gets you down, then I suggest going back up to the top of the list and checking out those Obama buttons again!

President Barack Obama Inauguration Day 2009 - Washington, DC Group!!! 2

Carol Maric — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 16:51:18 EST

An open invitation to join : President Barack Obama Inauguration Day 2009 - Washington, DC Group!!!

http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/InaugurationDay2009

Make plans to be in DC on this historical day!

Make plans to be tuned in with TV and/or the Internet.

Be out in public with friends and fellow citizens.

A Grand and Wonderful Celebration!

Italians react to Berlusconi's comments and Maher's new rules

Alexandra Pereira — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 14:25:22 EST

The reaction of Italians to Berlusconi's comments:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4M1Cy5DCzAI&feature=related

Bill Maher's best new rules ever:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHu4p-yb0pc&feature=related

Wall in Washington DC With Messages from Around the World to President Obama

Alexandra Pereira — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 09:58:12 EST

"Congratulations President Obama. Change Won't be easy but... Together as One World, Yes We Can"

An Avaaz.org initiative, you can help us reach the goal of 1 million messages from around the world here:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/million_messages_to_obama/?cl=145666506&v=2398

tell your friends, ask them to write their message.

BIG VICTORY FOR PRESIDENT ELECT OBAMA! (Poem Version II)

Delores Chamblin — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 01:53:31 EST

The term is ending soon for Mr. George Bush.
Across the USA the massive grassroots push
throughout the campaign for the '08 election
to register, vote early and make the selection
for a man of hope and real change not drama
resulted in big victory for President - Obama!

"Yes We Did!"

HATS OFF TO OBAMA!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/africreations/show

Delores

http://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/main/Afri

http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/BlackDesignersCraftersandArtistsforObama

Makiah's Bill

i am rasa — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 14:49:30 EST

Makiah's Bill

NOW, that WE have children in the White House, let's make 'the children' the nation's TOP PRIORITY, as they are in Barack and Michelle's life.

Let's be a part of the integral age, while surfing the agriculture, industrial, information, conceptual, integral, magic and utopian ages. Let's ALL be part of the Dream Team, of playing the ultimate game of life.

Let's get Makiah's Bill on every desktop of every congressman, senator and the President of the United States of America. This is a TOP PRIORITY bill coming from the bottom UP...Let's start the NEW Year, January 20th 2009 with the world's highest priority, the children.

makiah.com

President Obama's Arts, as published in The Huffington Post

Lucia - Team Coordinator for OBAMAWOOD — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 02:41:57 EST

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lucia-brawley/president-obamas-arts_b_136616.html

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S ARTS

by Lucia Brawley

At 10 years old, Mordecai Santiago was already the toughest kid at the 52nd Street Project, the renowned Hell's Kitchen not-for-profit where I volunteered as an academic tutor and arts educator. Though diminutive in stature and "held back" in school, Mordecai wielded an authority beyond his years with children and adults alike. Officials at his over-crowded elementary school had diagnosed Mordecai with A.D.D. and wanted to put him on Ritalin. He shared a small, low-income-housing apartment with four other siblings and two parents. They had no computer.

But Mordecai was a natural on the piano. He loved to play Beethoven's Fur Elise by ear on the only piano in the after-school clubhouse. Since he'd never had a proper lesson, his fingering was incorrect, but he hit every note flawlessly. The only way I could get him to finish his homework, was by promising him "piano time" at the end of every tutoring session. He often would rather play his own haunting compositions than go home.

His unadulterated love of music inspired me to ask fellow Harvard alums to donate piano lessons to kids at the program. Offers flowed in by email in overwhelming numbers. However, the administrators of the program, already under-staffed, under-resourced and over-worked, regretfully explained that they could not accept.

In Mordecai, a tough, brilliant, little kid in baggy jeans and a puffy North Face jacket, I saw up-close the precarious fate of millions of American children who might evolve into great artists or great criminals, at the flip of a coin. Without proper funding for programs like the 52nd Street Project, the latter possibility becomes an inevitability for too many kids.

In order to stay true to the campaign's message of hope, progress and action, I would like to see an Obama administration accomplish a broad array of arts policy goals. Arts education must find its way back to American public schools, not only as a proven measure to bring up students' math and science scores, but to allow students a means of self-expression that will save their futures - as well as saving the system the cost of trying and incarcerating many of them. Even if they never go into the arts, a youth's acquired creative problem solving abilities will serve her in any field.

Imagine art and performance exchanges between students from different areas and strata of American society, in order to create dialogue that bridges psychological gaps between demographic groups and regions.

More than an educational tool, the arts offer unique diplomatic opportunities. In the Kennedy tradition, there should be exchanges between students and adult artists from our country and other countries around the globe, perhaps in partnership with the U.N.

Controversially, during the Cold War, the CIA infiltrated Eastern European theater groups, in order to inspire revolt within oppressive regimes and prevent democratic regimes from turning Communist, as illustrated in The Cultural Cold War:The CIA and the World off Arts and Letters, by Frances Stonor Saunders. Whether one agrees with such secretive programs or not, do they not reflect the diplomatic potential of the arts, as an alternative to overt military policing?

Acting in Hungary, a country famed for its great composers, I saw young students well versed in classical music. How wonderful it would be to see original U.S. musical forms as part of every American child's curriculum: jazz, folk music, rock'n'roll, and hip-hop. What could be more patriotic than embracing our nation's cultural contributions to the world? And why not include world music and dance as an integral part of the American-immigrant and global stories?

With an eye toward valuing the contributions of artists, as all other developed nations do, I would like to see artist-tailored unemployment and healthcare insurance for those who can prove a history of work in their chosen field. And, to offer alternatives to a justice system that now reinforces the dehumanization inherent in an excessively stratified society, I would like to see more programs like Rhodessa Jones' "Medea Project," that helps rehabilitate inmates in the Bay Area correctional system, by allowing them to enact their own stories, thereby exorcising the causes of their anger and accepting responsibility for their actions.

Visual art projects helped children overcome the trauma of having witnessed 9/11. Imagine the benefits of music and art therapy for every soldier returning from Iraq who suffers from PTSD.

The arts humanize society, not merely in a spiritual and emotional sense. We have tangible historical evidence of how the arts have directly contributed to the fortification of a troubled America. F.D.R.'s New Deal - especially relevant now, as we face the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression - included the Federal Writers Project, Federal Theater Project, Federal Art Project and Federal Music Project, each of which employed artists in ways that served and uplifted society and the economy as a whole. In their 1995 essay, "New Deal Cultural Programs: Experiments in Cultural Democracy," Don Adams and Arlene Goldbard state that, rather than homogenize distinct regions with a big government agenda, these projects set forward in vivid relief the unique beauties of each region, inspired progress within the labor movement, and led to commercially viable enterprises.

Today, Barack Obama often speaks of a deficit, not merely economic, but of empathy. He reminds us that, "I am my brother's keeper." Obama's campaign has inspired an unprecedented amount of creativity through songs, artwork, dance and dramatic arts, and captured the imaginations of people worldwide. If a President Obama chooses to utilize his historic grassroots organization beyond the campaign, in order to successfully put forth initiatives that stand up to corporate special interests, he must remember that the arts will be the primary mouthpiece for galvanizing the people's partnership.

Barack Obama

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YAY: Brand New Day!!

Alexandra Pereira — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 21:01:41 EST

"Brand New Day" by Marc Johnson, from Chicago:

http://www.dreamyjazz.com/audio/13-Brand%20New%20Day.mp3

Lyrics:

"Quit your fronting and your fighting
Throw your sadness and your heartache away!
We're living in a Brand New Day.

The world's abuzzing with the novelty of all the things
We've heard and read and seen
A sea change igniting our dreams
Framing all of our hopes and
Defining the possibilities

Never been a better time to be and to be free
If you believe as I believe

We're living in a brand new day

We've got fences to mend
Bridges to build and hearts to heal
Overcoming obstacles from without and within
It's a (crazy) lot of work but I know that once it begins
What an amazing place we'll find ourselves in

So hey don't delay
Put one foot in front of another and begin this brand new day

We've got fences to mend
Bridges to build and hearts to heal
Overcoming obstacles from without and within
It's a (crazy) lot of work but I know that once it begins
What an amazing place we'll find ourselves in

So seize the day, this brand new day
Gonna stir it up, gonna break it down
Melt it like we should
Bringing love and light and hope to every neighborhood
It's a Brand New Day."

A Brand New Day Is Here

WE DID IT!

! Arry Murphey-Frank-Foothills Area Manager CA CD4 — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 19:35:42 EST

Congratulations to all of us grassroots workers! We did it, we changed the nation and we now have the most wonderful president! President Obama! Thank you to all that helped out and thank you to all of the wonderfull Obama volunteers here in the foothills. You are fantastic! Thank you BARACK OBAMA for teaching us all to be community organizers and to care about our country again.

PEACE AND LOVE TO ALL,

Arry

AN OPEN LETTER TO OUR NEW PRESIDENT-ELECT

Scott S. — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 11:27:28 EST

Dear Mr. President-Elect Obama: I first want to congratulate you on a job WELL done and a victory WELL deserved! You have managed to capture the hopes and dreams of an entire nation and the world. You showed us that victory can be achieved while staying to a higher moral standard and while sticking to the issues that matter to your constituents. As you know, now the real work begins. It's time that we as a nation put our "money where our mouth is" and roll up our sleeves on a daily basis and begin to right the wrongs that have been done along with you. We have been complacent as a nation over the last 8 years in holding our elected officials to a higher standard. Now is the time for that to change. I will be blunt in letting you know that the American people (and the world for that matter) will NOT be fooled again. The left, the right and everyone in between will be holding you and your administration accountable from day one. I know you will never forget that. Because if you do, you WILL be hearing from us, the American people. You may be the "skinny guy from Chicago" but you have broad shoulders and the weight of the world is on those shoulders. I do not envy you. But at the same time, be it chance, circumstances or your prophetic ability to lead and inspire, the world could not ask for a more aptly suited individual to take the reins at this important time in history. The "dream" has been realized in so many respects. But we are not done. The "dream" is never done. It is continuous. Passed along from generation to generation, like a torch. We have to be careful not to get burned, as we have so many times in the past. We cannot fool ourselves and think that we are now entering into Utopian times. What has been done over the past 8 years is an example of the tenacity by which the balance the world hangs on to. One event can tip it either way. Towards heaven or hell. But what is even more important is who and how that situation will ultimately be handled by the world population, and its leaders. But remember, we consider you a leader and not really a President. Because it is only a leader who can successfully channel a movement in the right direction. The word "leader" is an active word. Whereas the word "president" or "presides" denotes inactivity or simply "watching" and standing still. You, Mr. President-Elect are a "leader" and not simply one who will be "presiding". I again, congratulate you, Mr. Obama and your family and all of those who have supported you along this fantastic journey, myself included. And I remind you that have gotten where you are because of the American people and the hopes and dreams that each one of us holds. We hold these truths to be self-evident. And we look to you to uphold those truths. And we will be ever watchful that you do. I wish you all of the luck, good will, tenacity and audacity that you will need over the next 4 years to lead this nation and world out of the darkness and into the light. Sincerely, Scott Stoddard An American for Barack Obama and CHANGE!

YAY!!!

Elisabeth — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 08:58:53 EST

Now what? I'm ready to serve!

Thanks for Believing

Bill — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 03:40:49 EST

Amazing! It actually worked! Congratulations to everyone who has worked so hard for this day! Imagine the biggest smile you can and double it! NOW, don't stop thinking about tommorrow! Yes we can! Yes we did!

Last Day for Change

Benjamin from New York, NY — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:02:50 EST

Here's what you can do:

VOTE

GET OUT THE VOTE
Phonebanks are open tonight until 9pm to call battleground states. Come down and be a part of New York making history in this campaign.

FINAL PUSH TO ELECT OBAMA (POEM & SLIDE SHOW)

Delores Chamblin — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 07:08:41 EST

The term will soon end for Mr. George Bush.
We must continue to make a huge final push
to get out the vote and make the selection
for the best candidate this historic election -
one with a clear message of hope not drama.
Oh "Yes We Can" elect Mr. Barack Obama!

HATS OFF TO OBAMA! (Slide Show)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/africreations/show

The Time is Now!

AngelVision — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 06:15:09 EST

Today predictions are easy.. we will rock this Country in history making numbers., Say good bye to the republicans and HELLO DEMOCRATS! OBAMA/BIDEN will win this election along with a number of democrats right down the line. As for John McCain, he has a future in acting. He is very good and can be funny. Sarah Palin, will be fed to the big bad WOLVES in her party!! Sorry what comes around goes around. Three fold!

Love and Peace & God Bless America, also.

Barack's Grandmother

Melanie — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 00:05:18 EST

Hi there.

I wish there was a place where we could send a sympathy card to Obama for the death of his Grandmother.
Do you know anything about where we could do that? Online? Like we did for Ted Kennedy when he was diagnosed?

TOOT's passing

glassbottomboats — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 18:46:08 EST

This is the FIRST blog I'VE EVER done ANYWHERE but I HAD 2 do this NOW! I just heard @ the passing of Barack's Grandma "Toot". Having lost many loved ones myself, I know what gets U thru is UNWAVERING faith & a strong SUPPORT system. I determine 2 B part of that strong system for Barack & his family & CONTINUE 2 hold them DEEPLY in my prayers.