Obama Supporters for Positive Dialogue

Senate passes $636 billion defense spending bill

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:13:36 EST

Senate passes $636 billion defense spending bill

12/19/09 CNN

Washington (CNN) -- The Senate passed a $636 million defense spending bill Saturday by an 88-10 vote.

Debate on the bill wrapped up Friday, setting the stage for the unusual Saturday morning final vote on the measure.

The Senate voted 63-33 Friday morning to end debate on the measure -- three votes more than required to break a GOP filibuster.

Under Senate rules, 30 hours must pass before final passage, which would in turn allow the chamber to resume consideration of the politically contentious health care bill.

Democrats said Republicans tried to slow consideration of the defense bill largely to prevent the passage of health care legislation before the Democrats' self-imposed Christmas deadline.

The House of Representatives passed the spending bill 395-34 Wednesday.

The measure includes money for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan but does not cover additional costs expected for the 30,000 U.S. troops the Obama administration announced it will send to Afghanistan next year. A separate request for those troops is expected to come up for a vote next spring.

Democrats also tacked onto the bill short-term extensions of several programs set to expire at the end of 2009, including a two-month extension of unemployment assistance and health care coverage for those who have lost their jobs.

And because the defense bill is the last spending measure both chambers of Congress will vote on this year, Democratic leaders also attached other extensions for programs they were unable to tackle by year's end.

To head off a major cut in payments to doctors, the bill keeps in place for two more months the current rates Medicare pays to physicians. The temporary "doc fix" delays until next year the debate over how to pay for a permanent fix for these rates.

The bill also extends some key provisions of the Patriot Act for two months.

House Democrats wanted to include a six-month continuation of those items but were forced to scale back because Senate Democratic leaders made it clear they would not be able to pass a longer extension this year.

Tensions were palpable on the Senate floor early Friday, with Democrats suggesting Republicans were sacrificing the defense of the nation to stall overhauling health care.

"Many who are filibustering this defense appropriations bill tonight are filibustering because they want to delay ... the health care reform legislation from being voted on," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Michigan.

"So the bill that provides the funding to support our men and women in uniform who are serving on the front lines, often under arduous and dangerous circumstances, to protect our nation is being filibustered to keep the Senate from acting on another unrelated piece of legislation. This is not only unbelievable; it is unconscionable."

But the Republican whip, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Arizona, was having none of it.

"Don't blame Republicans for the fact that this bill comes before us a week before Christmas and, therefore, we have to act on it at this point in time. Republicans had nothing to do with that timing," Kyl said.

United Nations Climate Change Conference

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:50:32 EST

12/17/09 From POLITICO (all in EST):

President Obama attends the United Nations Climate Change Conference on Friday, December 18th

8:15 AM Obama meets with Brazilian President Lula da Silva.

9:00 AM Obama participates in the afternoon session of the climate conference.

10:00 AM Obama speaks before the COP-15 committee

10:30 AM Obama meets with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

Obama’s address will stress the administration's belief that all countries, even the poorest, have a responsibility to take action.

"This is a global issue that demands global action – therefore, all countries have responsibility to move forward," said the aide.

Obama is expected to meet with Danish Prime Minister Lars Rasmussen and other conference leaders early Friday and then spend much of the day negotiating with other world leaders, with possible bilateral talks taking place between Obama and senior Chinese officials.

12/18/09 CSPAN Update:

Pres. Obama calls for "action" from leaders on Agreement Delegates are now being asked to continue negotiations over the weekend with hopes to reach an agreement on a climate change pact. This morning, Pres. Obama attended multi-lateral talks with hopes of moving the stalled talks forward. In his address to the conference he reiterated his role by stating "I'm here to act and not talk."

Here is the official UN COP15 site: http://en.cop15.dk/

*****************

Good Luck President Obama and the World Leaders in coming to an agreement for climate!

strengthen it, approach from a different angle, try again

Ann — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:04:17 EST

I do not support passage of the health "care" "reform" bill in its current form.

I agree with Howard Dean and Keith Olbermann.

It's been compromised far too much. I'd like to see a stronger version that also approaches from a different angle.

What I would like to see in the bill:

-patient/consumer protections

-cost reduction (!!!)

-the insurance industry anti-trust exemption killed

-non-profit health coverage options as well as a public option (the influence of the insurance industry has manifested itself to a remarkably unsavory degree in the last couple of months)

-smarter prescription drug and medical supply purchasing options

-assistance/clearing of red tape for small businesses including pooling (much of which could be taken care of with a public option)

-no mandate if it ends up being a piece of crap bill--that would only make a horrid situation worse

I don't care if that's a lot, I'm putting it out there in a vacuum.

As for the gag order that is the abortion amendment, a compromise that would make me only marginally sick is to let the people of each state decide via special ballot measure in fall 2010.

As for 2010, elected officials in tough districts can take this back to their constituents: while opponents of reform not only did nothing to make a horrendous situation better, they stood in the way of those who were trying to improve it. Those who worked for reform can tell their constituents, I did something, I fought for improvement, I fought for your well-being. I would think that would resonate. Subsequently, Republicans will call anyone who votes for the bill a socialist no matter what the bill looks like anyway.

I truly believe we can implement meaningful reform by starting out stronger with a smarter approach.

Last, I do think the American people need a little uptick from President Obama. Not necessarily to advocate for passage of the bill, but to advocate what he advocates. I appreciate his attempts to find common ground behind the scenes, but I do not think he has to do so standing only as himself.

All we need in order to understand the complexity of the universe lives in the simplicity of each fragment. [adapted from Fractal Time by Gregg Braden]

Will not be easy and will take time

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 11:35:14 EST

So let me remind you tonight that change will not be easy. That change will take time. There will be setbacks, and false starts, and sometimes we will make mistakes. But as hard as it may seem, we cannot lose hope. Because there are people all across this country who are counting us; who can't afford another four years without health care or good schools or decent wages because our leaders couldn't come together and get it done.

Jan 26, 2008 Barack Obama

***********

Put away the negativity! Don't add to the problem!

If you are angry about the slow process of Congress well then pick yourself up and WRITE & CALL congress!

Then you can sit back and say "I did my share and was productive in being the solution"!

In (limited) defense of Senator Lieberman

The Bard of Wilmette — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:07:56 EST

Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut has been an irritant to most left-of-center Americans for several years. I would not exactly call myself a big fan of the guy, except probably in comparison to most OFA bloggers. Unlike most Democrats in Congress, Sen. Lieberman has been a long time supporter of free trade. In my view, Lieberman is right and most other Democrats are wrong, regarding this particular issue. My general preference is to have political leaders who have socially liberal instincts but who are also supporters of free trade and reasonably friendly to small businesses. Bill Clinton combines these characteristics. To a greater degree than most members of Congress, so does Joe Lieberman. On the other hand, I strongly disagreed with his support for the disastrous invasion of Iraq, so my overall opinion of him is mixed.

I have never called myself a Democrat, but rather an independent who usually favors the Democrats in national elections, and I have been an enthusiastic supporter of Barack Obama. Although I have a generally negative opinion of the top Democratic leaders in Congress (especially Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi), I do want President Obama to succeed as a president, and for that to happen, the Democrats have to be able to stay in control of both houses of Congress after the 2010 elections. On that basis, therefore, I am advocating for the Democrats. The Democrats need to be a “big tent” party if they are going to be successful, and this means that they should not insist on ideological purity within their ranks. If some Democrats in Congress tend to side with the Republicans on selected issues, I do not have a problem with that. In Lieberman’s case, he sides with the Republicans on most defense and national security matters, but with the Democrats on most other issues. Some other Democrats, especially those from conservative states or districts, are “pro life” or “pro gun” regarding those particular issues.

At the national level, the Democrats should understand that it is better, for their general political interests, to have a state or district represented by a Democrat who caucuses with their party, and who votes with their party half the time than to have it represented by a Republican who opposes them nearly all the time. One might argue that it is one thing to have a relatively conservative Democrat in a “red” state such as Virginia or Montana, but that it should not be acceptable in a “blue” state such as Connecticut. In my opinion, the big tent principle applies across the board.

When Lieberman lost a well-funded challenge from Ned Lamont in the Democratic primary for the Senate in 2006, he won the election as an independent, mainly with the help of Republican voters who correctly determined that their own party’s candidate had no chance of winning. As a consequence, Lieberman had little reason to remain loyal to his old political party. Following his reelection, he secured a deal with the party leadership that would keep him caucusing with the Democrats. This was critical to the balance of power in the Senate, which otherwise would have stayed under Republican control. He may not have been a reliable vote on various issues, but most critical under the circumstances was his continuing to caucus with the Democrats, giving that party the committee chairmanships.

Like most Obama supporters, I was appalled by Lieberman’s decision to conspicuously support Republican John McCain for president last year. I would have tolerated it if Lieberman’s support was very low key. Suppose, for example, that Lieberman made no public appearances related to the presidential campaign, and issued a statement such as: “Senator Obama is a good and intelligent man who might make a good president some day. However, at this time I believe that Senator McCain has superior experience, and is better qualified to be president right now. For that reason, I will vote for John McCain in November.” While I would have sharply disagreed with the premise that McCain’s longer experience implied that he would make a better president, it would have been an understandable public position for Lieberman to take. Instead, as we know, Lieberman energetically campaigned for McCain, and joined others in disparaging Obama. I did not like that, but again, it is not as if Lieberman still owed any allegiance to the Democratic Party. When Obama won anyway, and was gracious enough to welcome Lieberman back as a semi-official ally, I figured that the rest of the Democrats ought to do the same.

The most ambitious challenge of the early Obama presidency is the attempt to enact a major reform of health care in the U.S. Sen. Lieberman has serious misgivings about some of the provisions in the proposed legislation, and so do I. A lot of Republican opposition is heavily motivated by a desire to weaken the presidency of Barack Obama. They (meaning most, but not all, congressional Republicans) will oppose anything that appears to help Obama politically, regardless of its merits. I do not believe that this is true of Lieberman or the other relatively conservative Democrats who have been working to water down the bill. They want to get a bill passed, but are rightly concerned about removing the elements of the bill they regard as unacceptable.

My hope is that a health care reform bill will be passed very soon. We already know that whatever passes will not be anybody’s idea of perfect legislation, but it can be a significant improvement over the House bill and what was initially proposed in the Senate. If we do get a final bill that is pretty good, it is quite possible that part of the credit should go to the contributions of Joe Lieberman and a few other centrist senators from both parties.

My O-Friend Ben posted this one:

☮ CR ❤ — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 18:38:43 EST

Barack Obama has much done on only 11 months...

Featured Legislations
=====================

Signed on October 30, 2009
Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009

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Signed on October 28, 2009
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010

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Signed on October 22, 2009
Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act

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Signed on August 06, 2009
Cash For Clunkers Extension

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Signed on June 22, 2009
Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act

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Signed on May 22, 2009
Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act of 2009

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Signed on May 22, 2009
Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act

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Signed on May 20, 2009
Helping Families Save Their Homes Act

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Signed on May 20, 2009
Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act

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Signed on April 21, 2009
Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act

Signed on March 30, 2009
Omnibus Public Lands Management Act

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Signed on March 20, 2009
Small Business Act Temporary Extension

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Signed on February 17, 2009
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

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Signed on February 11, 2009
DTV Delay Act

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Signed on February 04, 2009
Children's Health Insurance Reauthorization Act

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Signed on January 29, 2009
Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act

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The direct actions of the Obama Administration has caused the economy to stabilize despite having inherited the biggest set of challenges of any president since Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

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Barack Obama started during his 2008 presidential candidacy to give the message that he would be open to discussion with adversaries, denounced torture by America and thus change American's reputation around the world.

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The Obama administration has achieved an international consensus around the need for Iran and North Korea to disable their nuclear weapons.

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President Obama helped to reach goals in agreement with other major nations in the reduction of carbon emissions at the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Climate in Copenhagen.

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The most significant piece of social legislation since Social Security, Health Care Reform, is on the brink of passing.

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WE NEED TO GET THIS WEBSITE BACK!

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 20:15:56 EST

12/12/09 I sent this to email to the DNC D.C. and The White House and I suggest that you do something similar:

I am a life long voting Democrat who never did anything more than vote. After the wrong doings of the Bush Administration I like millions said "Enough" and became involved with Barack Obama's campaign. I became a volunteer with South County 4 Obama and then when our Team Lead found the duties too time consuming I was asked to take his place. I concentrated on coordinating Obama voter registration events and my Republican co-captain held weekly phone banking events and caravans to the nearby swing states of Nevada and New Mexico.

I know that the DNC took over maintaining barackobama.com (Barack Obama's website) but there is no one helping out when objectionable posts are made. I reported a pornographic photo that was posted on barackobama.com in April to the DNC I received a phone call for Russell from the DNC D.C. thanking me and notifying me that the problem would be fixed. The photo was removed but the fix also eliminated the viewing option of new posts which was a bit severe.

But anyway anti-Obama people are posting disruptive, degrading and disrespectful things all the time and we report it and NOTHING gets done. If some outsider sees these daily anti-Obama posts then the outsider will think "Wow, they don't even have control of their own site!" Also the media would love to see that as well. Please the DNC needs to establish some sort of control; maybe give certain trusted people who are one the site regularly the option to be able to report things AND GET RESULTS??!!

Please we are begging you! You know that you will need the supporters and the OFA site at full speed for 2010. You can not let what the Obama campaign worked so hard to build up to just degrade so. You need to help us out!!!!

*******

Here is the DNC technical report site (I know that it is for THEIR technical problems but I figure that they own our site so it is having technical difficulties too so they are responsible!)

http://my.democrats.org/page/s/techproblems

* 12/16/09 I followed up with sending hard copies to the DNC D.C. and the White House.

Mele Kalikimaka & Hau'oli Makahiki Hou

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 12:19:15 EST

Hawaii abuzz about Obama's expected holiday return

12/13/09 Herbert A. Sample - AP

KAILUA, Hawaii – Many in this upscale, oceanside suburb of Honolulu are expecting it to again serve as the holiday getaway for scores of reporters, photographers, federal agents_ and one president.

The White House hasn't formally announced that President Barack Obama and his family will be celebrating Christmas in Hawaii — or anywhere else — in part because the health care reform debate in Congress may delay his departure. Gov. Linda Lingle's office and Honolulu police also are remaining silent.

But there are many behind-the-scenes indications that plans are being made, and Kailua is abuzz with anticipation, hoping for an economic boost from another visit by the Hawaii-born president.

"The word is out," said John Stallings, a real estate agent who runs the Web site OurKailuaTown.com. "I'd say it's more than the talk around town that they are returning."

Stallings said he knows for a fact that preparations are being made to house Secret Service agents during the holidays in rental homes near where Obama stayed a year ago. There have also been several news reports indicating a possible presidential vacation starting Dec. 23.

A visit would be Obama's first as president to Hawaii, where he was born and spent many of his childhood years. It's also the first time he's coming home with no relatives living here. Obama's grandmother passed away last year just days before he was elected and his sister has since moved to Washington.

Many expect that Obama, his wife, Michelle, and their two daughters will vacation in the same multimillion-dollar beach home where they stayed in a year ago. It's located on the Windward side of Oahu at the base of the towering, green Koolau mountains, about a half-hour drive from downtown Honolulu. The five-bedroom home is in long cul-de-sac and features Kawainui Stream on the other side of the road and the white sands of Kailua Beach out back. It's a pricey neighborhood — one nearby home is on the market for nearly $13 million.

Neighbors said they aren't concerned that Obama's visit will cause havoc since he and his entourage didn't seem to cause much disruption last year.

"It wasn't problematic," Lisa Kiakona said. "It was kind of neat to be in the mix."

Kern Rogerson was slightly bummed when told Obama is expected to show up soon. But that's only because he regularly kayaks along the Kawainui Stream canal and last year the Secret Service prevented him from launching down the street from where Obama was encamped, he said.

"It's more important to keep him safe," said Rogerson, 59, who lives in neighboring Kaneohe. "I figure it's a small sacrifice."

Obama once regularly visited Hawaii during the holidays to see his sister, Maya Ng-Soetoro, and his grandmother. He last visited a year ago when he was president-elect and the glow of his historic election was still bright even as the country was reeling from the financial crisis on Wall Street. He also vacationed in August 2008 shortly after earning the Democratic nomination.

The economy is still struggling and it will be a tough holiday season for many Hawaii residents, particularly those dealing with job losses or cutbacks in hours, said Brian Schatz, chairman of the Hawaii Democratic Party. But Obama remains popular in his birthplace, Schatz said.

Obama "said all along, through the campaign and for the last year, that his concern is not the day-to-day fluctuations of polling data but jobs numbers and how people are actually doing," added Schatz, who like other Hawaii officials carefully couched his comments in a way that would not confirm the president is going to vacation in Hawaii.

Hawaii Republican Party Chairman Jonah Kaauwai said he welcomes Obama back home, but insisted the president's luster is worn. "The excitement of his celebrity is certainly still there, but the actual outcome of his election and what he's been doing I think has reduced the fanfare," Kaauwai said.

If Obama returns to Hawaii, he is not expected to make public appearances, save outings with friends and family, Schatz said. Last year, Obama bodysurfed, played basketball and worked out at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, shot a few rounds of golf and accompanied daughters Malia and Sasha, now 11 and 8, to a local shop that makes shave ice, Hawaii's version of snow cones.

"Last time he came, it did great things for the economy," said Richard Whaley, assistant manager of Island Snow Kailua. "Everybody wanted to come over here and do everything that he did."

That includes eating a "Snowbama" shave ice slathered with guava, cherry and lemon lime syrups — Obama's choice of flavors. The store still displays an Associated Press photo of Obama and his daughters sitting on a bench outside the shop last year, slurping their shave ice.

"We get Japanese tourists that come in, see the picture and they just freak out about it," Whaley said.

Mary Carter, manager of three gift and art shops along Kailua's main drag, recalled how an Obama aide last year bought merchandise from one of the stores on behalf of Obama's family.

"We're thrilled to death that he's coming back to Kailua," she said, noting that when tourists discover the president has vacationed in Kailua, they want to see what the hubbub is all about.

"They see it in the newspapers. They see it on TV, and then they want to come and see what Kailua has to offer," she added. "As a retailer, that's a good thing for us."

View's of Koʻolau Range

****************

Mele Kalikimaka & Hau'oli Makahiki Hou!

is Hawaiian for "Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!"

Michelle Obama says she enjoys 'really bad TV,' lazy days curled up with first dog Bo

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:20:16 EST

Michelle Obama says she enjoys 'really bad TV,' lazy days curled up with first dog Bo

12/10/09 AP

WASHINGTON - Michelle Obama says curling up with the first family's dog and clicking through food and design shows on television provide moments of peace amid a busy schedule.

During an interview to mark her selection as Barbara Walters' most fascinating person of the year, the first lady said her guilty pleasures involve food and "really bad TV." She also said her toned arms are a bit of "revenge" against her in-shape husband, President Barack Obama

"My really lazy days are I sit with Bo, who usually climbs up on my lap. He thinks he's a lap dog," she said of the Obamas' large Portuguese water dog. "He'll cozy up with me, and I'm just clicking through mindless shows. A lot of, you know, shows about food and design, and all that good stuff. And it's just quiet, and I'm not thinking about anything for that second — not about the kids, not about my husband, not about my schedule. If I get an hour of that during the course of a week, it feels like heaven."

Mrs. Obama went on about her connection with the dog, a gift from the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy: "Bo is my baby, he's our son. He's wonderful. He's growing. It's like I'm a mother. You ask about my kid, I'm gone."

Talking about her human children, Mrs. Obama said her workout routine began when Sasha and Malia were babies.

"I really started right after I had Malia, our oldest," Mrs. Obama said.

"(Malia) was still waking up for that 4 o'clock feeding and I'd get up because I'd be the first one to hear her, and he'd be asleep," she continued. "And I thought, 'I'm up, I might as well go to the gym. And if I get to the gym, then he'll have to wake up and do that feeding.' I get a workout in and everyone will be happy."

On a more serious subject, Mrs. Obama said her husband would not have sought the White House had she nixed the idea. She said she didn't want to stand in the way of her husband's dreams or leadership.

"I think I made the right call," Mrs. Obama said.

************************

As a "dog mom" of Sable, who we picked up from the shelter nine years ago, I am so very happy to know that our First Lady Michelle is so close to Bo. My worries are now put to rest because I was most worried about our FLOTUS' adjustment to such an exploited life and whether she could be happy at the White House.

THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

"NERVIE" — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:45:21 EST

OKAY so today President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle went to Norway to receive the coveted Nobel Peace Prize and you can't seem to hear enough about "9 days before, he agreed to sending 30,000 more troops raising the total to 100,000 troops in Afghanistan". How can he receive such an honor for having not been in office more than 8 months (depending on whether you consider the date he was called for the Prize or when the Prize Committee selected him) is being stated.

The bottomline, after 8 years of being in Afghanistan, we owe it to the citizens to assist in nation building although we have seen how corrupt Karzai can be. After years of dropping bombs on a society who had housed Osama and the Al Qaeda crew, we are trying to help them build their nation under the principles of a democracy that depending on whom you listen to, may not even be what they want. But that is the Obama plan.

The hope I believe with all capitol letters is that the people of Afghanistan will become more aggressive in wanting the help of American troops, builders, educators, and infrastructure contractors. But interestingly the areas we are looking to stabilize happen to be the same area where we know The Taliban is fighting tooth and nail for their right to be leaders in their own country. Do we have the right to go into the country and tell them what is best for them?

Will we be able to keep reigns on Karzai and keep reminding him "democracy" is not a dictatorship where you stash away 1.3 million votes when you believe you are about to loose?

The media has been screaming about the 18 months Obama said will be the deadline for pulling out. There are several comments in Huffington Post magazine, Amy Goodman's commentary on DemocracyNow! and Jesse Jackson on Tavis Smiley Show says that 18 months is a questionable amount of time to complete nation building, but has anyone factored in, that we are talking about a nation of people who have been around longer than our nation is old?

Maybe we shouldn't sell these people short! I'm sure they are tired of the time, money, families lost, bloodshed, and living without as we are of seeing them get back on their feet. And bottomline we want to see our soldiers come home in one piece, with a good sense of whom they are for the service they have given to this country. And not ever have troops feel as many expressed when they went to Vietnam, that their services weren't appreciated . . .

So maybe with the Peace Award President Obama will remember what the essence of the award means and stick to the 18 months withdrawal plan? We again, can only hope.

Obama Nobel Peace Prize Banquet Menu

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:43:35 EST

Obama Nobel Peace Prize Banquet Menu

12/10/09 ObamaFoodOrama.blogspot.com

The citizens of Oslo--and many visitors--greeted President Obama with a torchlight parade earlier this evening, following the ceremony for the Nobel Peace Prize. The President and Mrs. Obama watched from the balcony of the Grand Hotel, then went downstairs to the ballroom for the Nobel Banquet.

Above: The head of the Norwegian Nobel Institute Geir Lundestad walks in front of from left to right, Thorbjon Jagland, head of the Nobel committee, Mrs. Obama, President Obama, King Harald, Queen Sonja, Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Mari.

Today's Schedule:
09:20: President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visit Oslo City Hall to participate in the Nobel Peace Prize Signing Ceremony.

10:00-11:00 The President will meet with Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, to take place between 10:00 and 11:00. Statements to the press will follow.

12:10: President Obama and Mrs. Obama will be received in audience by King Harald and Queen Sonja at the Royal Palace. Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit will also be present.

13:00: The Nobel Prize Award ceremony will begin at the Oslo City Hall Auditorium. 1 1/2 hours. Livestreamed.

19:00: President Obama is expected to view the traditional post-ceremony torch light parade from his balcony at the Hotel Grand, then arrive at the Nobel Prize banquet, which is at the hotel. The white tie affair has 250 invited guests. The President's speech will be televised. The rest of the banquet is closed press.

Menu
Starters:
Cured Reindeer Fillet and Smoked Duck
Asparagus Salad with Truffle

Fillet of Cod from the coast of ”Møre”
Jerusalem Artichoke purée

Aquavit Sorbet

Entree:
Juniper Berry and Thyme marinated Elk
Pommes Berny and glazed Turnip

Desserts:
Caramel and Chocolate glazed Banana Mousse
Peanut Meringue

Wines:
Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée no 733
Riesling Cuvée Frédéric Émile 2004 – Trimbach
Pouilly-Fumé 2008 – André Dezat
et fis
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 – Robert Mondavi
Vidal Icewine 2003 – Inniskillin Wines

*******

Bon Appetitt og skål

A plug for America's best conservative columnist

The Bard of Wilmette — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 14:42:51 EST

Some day, when I have lots of time to think and write, I hope to do an essay about how liberal goals can be achieved with the use of “conservative” policies, and also how conservative goals can be achieved with “liberal” policies. In the meantime, I would like to call attention by my liberal friends to an excellent recent column by David Brooks of the New York Times. In my opinion, Mr. Brooks is by a wide margin the best conservative columnist in America (I also must admit to liking George Will, but even Mr. Will seems unable to resist cheap shots at left-of-center public officials).

In the December 8 Times, Mr. Brooks discusses a series of policies that he argues will encourage innovation that will fulfill goals that most liberals and conservatives alike should be able to agree on. I am persuaded that his “innovation agenda” is an excellent idea, and I would like to see the Obama administration give it serious consideration, and probably act on most or all elements of it.

Here is a link to the December 8 David Brooks column:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/08/opinion/08brooks.html?_r=1&scp=10&sq=december+08+2009&st=nyt

Reid says 'broad agreement' on public option, senators await details

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 19:24:29 EST

12/9/09 News-Medical.Net

Coverage of the Senate's "broad agreement" to create a national health insurance plan continues, with Democratic leaders remaining mum on details while insisting the compromise leaves a "public" option in the bill.

The Washington Post: "Democratic Senate negotiators struck a tentative agreement Tuesday night to drop the controversial government-run insurance plan from their overhaul of the health-care system, hoping to remove a last major roadblock preventing the bill from moving to a final vote in the chamber." The Post reports that the deal would allow the government's Office of Personnel Management to negotiate with insurers to create private, national plans much like those available to federal employees. It would also open Medicare to some people 55 to 64 years old (Murray and Montgomery, 12/9).

Kaiser Health News reports that lobbyists for insurers, doctors and hospitals object to the Medicare "buy-in" for some 55-64 year olds, saying that "Medicare already doesn't pay enough. Adding more people would compel hospitals, doctors and others to jack up charges to private insurers and employers to make up the difference, they warned" (Appleby and Carey, 12/9).

Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said he believes the plan is "an idea worth consideration," Roll Call reports. "The No. 2 House Democrat couched the assessment by stating he did not want to 'anticipate what is acceptable or not acceptable' in the Senate. But he also pointed to the difficulty of finding 60 Senate votes on a reform package, and he praised Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-Nev.) 'herculean' efforts to forge consensus" (Newmyer, 12/8).

Meanwhile, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., "told reporters that news accounts that the government-run 'public option' had been dropped were 'not true,'" Chicago Tribune reports (Levey and Hook, 12/9).

But a version of the article appearing in the Tribune's sister paper, the Los Angeles Times, quotes a Reid aide as saying, "By and large, it's not a public option, but I think the liberals felt so strongly about getting a bill that allows for comprehensive coverage and meaningful reform, it was worth accepting this." Another concession to liberals in the compromise may be "a mechanism for triggering the creation of a more traditional government-run plan like the one now in the bill, if the nonprofit option does not materialize" (Hook and Levey, 12/9).

CNN: "[L]iberal Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, one of 10 Democratic senators working on the deal, said in a statement released after Reid's announcement that he would not 'support proposals that would replace the public option in the bill with a purely private approach. We need to have some competition for the insurance industry to keep rates down and save taxpayer dollars,' Feingold said. ... Two senators who oppose a public option, moderate Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine and independent Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, said they were open to the non-profit private alternative to a public option" (Bas, Barrett and Henry, 12/9). The New York Times reports that Reid has not yet briefed colleagues outside of the ten-member negotiating group that came up with the deal. "Even senior members of the party said late Tuesday that they did not know if an agreement had been reached. 'I have no idea,' said Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the assistant Democratic leader" (Pear and Herszenhorn, 12/8).

One remaining hurdle, according to The Wall Street Journal, is that the plan must get a passing score from the Congressional Budget Office. "Although the public option generated significant dissension among Democrats, the CBO projected that a relatively small number of Americans would use it. It said total enrollment after a decade would be only three million to four million people, in part because the CBO predicted the public option would attract less-healthy employees and charge higher premiums" (Hitt and Adamy, 12/9).

Another rant about health care reform

The Bard of Wilmette — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:09:07 EST

Republican lawmakers have several reasons for opposing the health care reform efforts now pending in Congress. Some of their stated reasons are just plain false, or improperly assume that this bill is simply the first step toward something else they consider to be more sinister. One of their generally unstated, but critical, motives is the desire to hand a major political defeat to President Obama. There may be genuine and principled reasons for their opposition, but there cannot be a serious doubt that the desire to politically weaken Obama is a major consideration for many GOP congressmen and senators.

One of the stronger arguments by the opposition is that the bill would commit the government to huge new expenditures, resulting in either staggering deficits or stifling new taxes. In other words, however worthy the reform goals may be, this version of health care reform is unaffordable. The two major objectives of health care reform are: extending coverage to those who currently cannot get it, and reducing actual health care costs as a percentage of the U.S. economy. Pursuing either one of these two goals while ignoring the other will not work. Assuming that the Senate passes something, and that a unified health care bill is eventually passed and sent to the president, the bill will very likely succeed in the first test (substantially extending coverage) but fail the second (reduce overall costs).

On this point, I think that the Republicans and moderate Democrats are correct. Unlike most Obama supporters, I do not favor the public option, with the possible exception of the so-called "trigger." Under the trigger provision, the public option would not come into being, unless certain conditions prevailed at some future date (let's say, five years after the bill becomes law) that by definition would make the public option necessary. Presumably, the private insurance companies do not want to compete with a government-backed entity, and they would have five years to make sure that this would never become necessary. The prospect of the trigger is both a carrot and stick to the insurance companies. It would spell out what is required of them in order to avoid a situation they would like to prevent, but it also gives them a reasonable opportunity to achieve those conditions.

In my opinion, the preferable outcome would be to leave the majority of health insurance in private hands, but the insurance companies could not deny or revoke coverage to any U.S. citizen or lawful resident due to personal health issues. This condition, where all applicants must be accepted, cannot work without the requirement that everybody must have health insurance. A young healthy person should not be able to decide not to take coverage (and therefore not pay any premiums), and then suddenly be given guaranteed coverage only after an obvious need arises.

There would still be many details to work out. For example, to what degree, if any, can the insurer discriminate regarding premiums between old and young people? As we all know, age discrimination exists in most other kinds of insurance. Young people pay less for life insurance, and more for car insurance, than old people do. Even assuming that discrimination based on specific health issues would be prohibited, older people are in general far more likely than younger people are to be consumers of health care services. If no age discrimination of any kind is allowed for health insurance, the program would represent a large transfer of wealth from the young to the old (I am sure that AARP would be fine with that). Maybe the best answer is to allow some age discrimination, but only within certain limits. I do not have any hard numbers, but I would guess that on average, a 64-year-old person is likely to incur at least five times the insurable medical expenses in a year, compared with the average 24-year-old. We might allow age discrimination, but limited to a smaller ratio than what would be suggested by the actual average usage by the different age groups. An even more politically sensitive issue than age discrimination is sex discrimination. Again, that does exist with other kinds of insurance. I won't dwell on the matter here, except to note that the health care reform bill has to address the issue, one way or another.

How do we reduce actual health care costs? This would involve facing some unpleasant realities. Two things ought to be easy. First, enact some meaningful tort reform. Set limits on non-economic damages, eliminate most punitive damages, and make it easier to get rid of incompetent and irresponsible doctors and other health care providers. Second, get rid of the prohibition against selling health insurance across state lines. That would do far more to introduce competition into a non-competitive market than the public option ever could. These things would help, but they are not enough. Many people use very expensive hospital emergency room services, when the same quality of treatment could be done at much less cost in outpatient clinics if they were available. There also needs to be more emphasis on prevention, compared with cure and treatment. A depressingly high percentage of America's total health care expenditures is spent in the last six months of a person's life. At the risk of making Sarah Palin's comments about "death panels" sound legitimate, some expensive procedures that might keep a terminal patient breathing a few additional days are not worth full insurance coverage. The reason that Ms. Palin's comment is nonsense is that there is nothing in the currently proposed bills in Congress that would force these kinds of difficult choices. Under most health insurance plans, there is absolutely no incentive for cost control. There is a deductible and some coinsurance limit, and after that, the patient (or patient's family) has no reason to place limits on the most extraordinary and expensive treatments, no matter how dubious their value to the patient... because 100% of the cost is paid by others. Until this system is changed, Americans will continue to pay far more than our friends in other Western countries do for health care, and without compensating gains in the quality of our collective health.

I noted in the first paragraph above that many Republican lawmakers oppose the proposed health care reforms, based on the desire to hurt Obama politically as much as any ideological reason. I am just the opposite. I want Obama to have a political victory, and for that reason I may wind up supporting a health care reform bill that I know is seriously flawed. I think that Barack Obama has some qualities that potentially can make him a great president, and a big political victory for him on health care reform can enable him to accomplish other things of value. For this reason, along with the obvious reality that nobody's idea of a "perfect" health care reform bill is going to happen, I want Obama to succeed in his efforts to get something passed that can credibly be called health care reform. Some of Obama's supposed friends in Congress seem to be more interested in moral grandstanding than in serving the public interest, let alone help the president politically. Whether we think the bill is politically too left or too right, passage of a mediocre bill now leaves the door open for improvements later. I should note, however, that given the uncertainties about future effects of passing a major health care reform bill, it is better to do too little initially than too much. It is much easier to add later on than to subtract. Failing to pass any health care reform will have two main consequences. It will greatly weaken Obama's presidency (along with the stature of all Democrats in Congress), and it will make any health care reform extremely unlikely for many years to come. So, let's get something passed, and now.

NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 22:42:09 EST

NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration's website has a section dedicated to global warming.

NOAA/ESRL's Global Monitoring Division (formerly CMDL) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, conducts sustained observations and research related to source and sink strengths, trends and global distributions of atmospheric constituents that are capable of forcing change in the climate of Earth through modification of the atmospheric radiative environment, those that may cause depletion of the global ozone layer, and those that affect baseline air quality.

Objectives under the NOAA Decadal to Centennial Change Element applicable to CMDL are:

Characterize the Forcing Agents of Climate Change
Ensure a Long-Term Climate Record
Guide the Rehabilitation of the Ozone Layer
Provide the Scientific Basis for Improved Air Quality

VISION

A laboratory that serves society by providing the best possible information on atmospheric constituents that drive climate change, stratospheric ozone depletion, and baseline air quality.

MISSION

To acquire, evaluate, and make available accurate, long- term records of atmospheric gases, aerosol particles, and solar radiation in a manner that allows the causes of change to be understood.

ESRL/GMD Research Themes

* Climate Forcing

* Ozone Depletion

* Baseline Air Quality

ESRL/GMD Research Groups

* Carbon Cycle Greenhouse Gases

* Halocarbons and other trace species

* Aerosols

* Solar Radiation

* Ozone and water vapor

* Observatory Operations

Related ESRL Research Themes

Data Products and Visualization

* Annual Greenhouse Gas Index

* CarbonTracker

* GLOBALVIEW data products designed to enhance the spatial and temporal distribution of atmospheric observations of CO2, CH4 and other related greenhouse gases.

* Ozone and Water Vapor

* Radiation

* Atmospheric Transport

* Observation Sites Information and maps of sites where GMD makes measurements.

* Ozone Depleting Gas Index

* Interactive Atmospheric Data Visualization

* Current Trends in CO2

* Trace Gases

* Aerosols

* Calibrations of Reference Gases

* Station Meteorology

OFA ===> "The best jobs report we’ve seen since 2007"

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 02:06:55 EST

"The best jobs report we’ve seen since 2007" By Christopher Hass - Dec 4th, 2009 at 4:00 pm EST Comments | Mail to a Friend | Report Objectionable Content

The Labor Department released its monthly employment survey today, and though the U.S. lost 11,000 jobs in November, that number was nearly 115,000 fewer than was forecast. The overall unemployment rate decreased, and the report found that nearly 160,000 fewer jobs had been lost over the last two months than had been previously thought. The New York Times called this "the strongest employment report since the recession began nearly two years ago."

Speaking at an event in Allentown, Pennsylvania today, President Obama explained:

This is good news, just in time for the season of hope. But I want to keep this in perspective. We still have a long way to go. I still consider one job lost one job too many. And as I said yesterday at a jobs conference in Washington, good trends don't pay the rent. We need to grow jobs and get America back to work as quickly as we can.
The journey from here will not be without setbacks or struggle. There will be more bumps in the road. But the direction is clear. When you think about how this year began, today’s report is a welcome sign that there are better days ahead.

Mele Kalikimaka

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 10:27:45 EST

Obama expected to visit Hawaii for family holiday vacation

12/4/09 By Derrick DePledge and Dan Nakaso - Honolulu Advertiser

President Obama is expected to vacation in Hawai'i later this month, a holiday tradition for the president and his family.

Obama, who was born in Hawai'i and graduated from Punahou School, has not been back to the Islands since being sworn in as president. He was president-elect when he and his family had a 12-day vacation at a beachfront home in Kailua last December, and still a candidate when he visited his dying grandmother in October 2008 and enjoyed a summer break and local fundraiser in August 2008.

Obama is expected to fly to Honolulu on Dec. 23 and return to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 2, several sources have said, spending the Christmas and New Year's holidays in the Islands. The president does not have any public events on his schedule.

A White House spokesman would not officially confirm the visit yesterday.

Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, died in November 2008, and his sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, has temporarily moved to Washington, so the president does not have a direct family tie to the Islands this year.

Brian Schatz, the chairman of the Democratic Party of Hawai'i, could not confirm the Obama visit but said if the president does vacation here, it would show his connection to home.

"Whenever he visits, everyone in Hawai'i is reminded of how proud we are of his strong roots in his home state," Schatz said. "I think the connection between Hawai'i and the president is strong in both directions."

The White House would not confirm the visit or any details about where Obama will stay.

return welcomed

Several neighbors along Kailuana Place, where the Obama family stayed in Kailua last year, said they would welcome a return visit.

"We saw the whole family — Michelle Obama and the girls," Ember Shinn said. "I hope they bring their dog this time."

The Obamas brought Bo, a Portuguese water dog, into their family in April. The little black-and-white dog was photographed wearing a lei in his White House debut.

With the White House press corps camped outside the driveway to the Obama vacation rental, Shinn said her house "became the bathroom for the press."

But she didn't mind.

"It was very exciting," Shinn said. "The best part was we got to know our neighbors because we all hung out on the street a lot," waiting for the Obamas to drive in and out of the neighborhood.

Jim Gebhard's daughter, Leisa, was house-sitting for a neighbor near Obama's rental and had to pass Secret Service security checkpoints every day.

When agents opened the trunk to Jim's car, they found campaign posters for his preferred presidential candidate, U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

"They joked with her and said, 'I don't know about this,' " Jim Gebhard remembered. "But she was on the list and they got used to her going back and forth."

Even though his candidate lost, Gebhard — a retired Air Force colonel — honors the commander in chief.

"He's the president now and I'm former military," Gebhard said. "You've got to respect the presidency."

'it was a positive'

Linda and David Oifer had just moved into the neighborhood when the Obamas arrived for their vacation. For the Oifers, it was a chance to meet everyone because the neighbors hung out on beach chairs hoping for a glance at the Obama family.

"It was a chance to really have fun with the neighbors," Linda Oifer said. "That was the most memorable thing, and we continue to be in contact with them as a result. The media and all that stuff was not a problem. It was a positive."

She also got to speak with Obama when a friend invited her to Marine Corps Base Hawaii, hoping to get a glimpse of him following his morning workout.

"I shook his hand on base and said, 'I'm going to the inauguration,' " she said. "He actually spoke to me. He said, 'That's terrific. Enjoy it.' "

*********************

Mele Kalikimaka Lyrics

Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say,
On a bright Hawaiian Christmas Day,
That's the island greeting that we send to you
From the land where palm trees sway,
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright,
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night,
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way
To say "Merry Christmas to you."

Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say,
On a bright Hawaiian Christmas Day,
That's the island greeting that we send to you
From the land where palm trees sway,
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright,
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night,
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii's way
To say, "Merry Christmas,
A very Merry Christmas to you."

Christmas Truce

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 18:02:32 EST

Christmas Truce

The "Christmas truce" is a term used to describe several brief unofficial cessations of hostilities that occurred on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day between German and British or French troops in World War I, particularly that between British and German troops stationed along the Western Front during Christmas 1914. In 1915 there was a similar Christmas truce between German and French troops, and during Easter 1916 a truce also existed on the Eastern Front.

British–German truce
British and German troops meeting in No man's land during the unofficial truce (British troops from the Northumberland Hussars, 7th Division, Bridoux-Rouge Banc Sector)

The truce began on Christmas Eve, 24 December 1914, when German troops began decorating the area around their trenches in the region of Ypres, Belgium, for Christmas. They began by placing candles on trees, then continued the celebration by singing Christmas carols, most notably Stille Nacht (Silent Night). The British troops in the trenches across from them responded by singing English carols.

The two sides continued by shouting Christmas greetings to each other. Soon thereafter, there were calls for visits across the "No Man's Land" where small gifts were exchanged — whisky, jam, cigars, chocolate, and the like. The soldiers exchanged gifts, sometimes addresses, and drank together. The artillery in the region fell silent that night. The truce also allowed a breathing spell where recently-fallen soldiers could be brought back behind their lines by burial parties. Proper burials took place as soldiers from both sides mourned the dead together and paid their respects.

The truce spread to other areas of the lines, and there are many stories of football matches between the opposing forces.

In many sectors, the truce lasted through Christmas night, but in some areas, it continued until New Year's Day.

The truce occurred in spite of opposition at higher levels of the military. Earlier in the autumn, Pope Benedict XV had begged for an official truce between the warring governments, "that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang." It was considered possible by the Germans but angrily denounced by the British who blithely ignored any further peace overtures made by Benedict - although the pope's ten conditions for a lasting peace were largely subsumed by Woodrow Wilson in his "14 Points".

British commanders Sir John French and Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien vowed that no such truce would be allowed again, although both had left command before Christmas 1915. In all of the following years of the war, artillery bombardments were ordered on Christmas Eve to ensure that there were no further lulls in the combat. Troops were also rotated through various sectors of the front to prevent them from becoming overly familiar with the enemy. Despite those measures, there were a few friendly encounters between enemy soldiers, but on a much smaller scale than in 1914.

French–German truce
In December 1915, “When the Christmas bells sounded in the villages of the Vosges behind the lines ..... something fantastically unmilitary occurred. German and French troops spontaneously made peace and ceased hostilities; they visited each other through disused trench tunnels, and exchanged wine, cognac and cigarettes for Westphalian black bread, biscuits and ham. This suited them so well that they remained good friends even after Christmas was over.” From an account by Richard Schirrmann, who was in a German regiment holding a position on the Bernhardstein, one of the mountains of the Vosges, and separated from the French troops by a narrow no-man’s-land, described by him as “strewn with shattered trees, the ground ploughed up by shellfire, a wilderness of earth, tree-roots and tattered uniforms.” Military discipline was soon restored, but Schirrmann pondered over the incident, and whether “thoughtful young people of all countries could be provided with suitable meeting places where they could get to know each other.” He went on to found the German Youth Hostel Association in 1919.

Informal armistice
During the first two years after the lines of the Western Front stabilized, other situations of informal armistice (i.e. armistice not imposed by high command) were recognized by both sides. According to anecdotes, inexperienced British commanders were astonished to find British and German forces both exposing themselves above the trench line within clear range of enemy guns. Artillery was often fired at precise points, at precise times, to avoid enemy casualties by both sides. Situations of deliberate dampening of hostilities also occurred by some accounts, e.g., a volley of gunfire being exchanged after a misplaced mortar hit the British line, after which a German soldier shouted an apology to British forces, effectively stopping a hostile exchange of gunfire.

Christmas Truce memorial
Descendants of Great War veterans, in contemporary uniform, shake hands at the 2008 unveiling of a memorial to the truce.

On 11 November 2008, the first official Truce memorial was unveiled in Frelinghien, France, the site of a Christmas Truce football game in 1914. After the unveiling and a Service of Remembrance, men from 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh (The Royal Welch Fusiliers) played a football match with the German Panzergrenadier Battalion 371. The Germans won, 2-1.

1st Battalion The Royal Welsh and Panzergrenadier Battalion 371 were invited to take part because their regimental ancestors from 2nd Battalion The Royal Welch Fusiliers and the 134th Saxon Infantry Regiment had held the Truce at Frelinghien on Christmas Day, 1914. The match was played in the presence of retired Major Miles Stockwell, grandson of Captain C. I. Stockwell, who commanded 'A' Company, 2/RWF in 1914 and wrote about the Truce in his diary. Mrs Margaret Holmes, daughter of Welsh Private Frank Richards, DCM, MM, and Oberst (Colonel) Joachim Freiherr von Sinner, grandson of Hauptmann (Captain) Maximilian Freiherr von Sinner, the commander of the Machine-gun Company of the German 6th Jäger Battalion, were also present at the game.

Before the match, as happened in 1914, a Saxon soldier rolled a barrel of beer towards the Welsh while Major Stockwell offered Lieutenant-Colonel von Sinner a plum pudding and a cigar. The football, signed by all players, is now in the possession of the Arbeitkreis für Sächsische Militärgeschichte. It will be displayed in the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr in Dresden, Germany.

Descendants of Great War veterans, in contemporary uniform, shake hands at the 2008 unveiling of a memorial to the truce.

*****************

I first learned about this extraordinary gesture from the wonderful 2005 movie "Joyeux Noël".

* * Merry Christmas World * *

Defenders of the Status Quo Obstructing Progress

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:48:06 EST

Word from the White House: Defenders of the Status Quo Obstructing Progress

12/2/09 Jesse Lee- WhiteHouse.gov blog

It's no secret that institutions of all stripes focus their communications on certain messages day to day. We thought it would all be a little more open and transparent if we went ahead and published our focus for the day, along with any related articles, documents, or reports.

Supporting article: "GOP Senator Pens Obstruction Manual For Health Care," Huffington Post, December 2, 2009

Supporting report: "Health Care in Crisis: 14,000 Losing Coverage Each Day," Center for American Progress, February 19, 2009

Talking Points: Defenders of the Status Quo Obstructing Progress

The health care status quo is unsustainable for American families, businesses, and the country as a whole. And with each passing day it only worsens. Yet opponents of reform continue their cynical attempts to delay change and preserve the status quo for as long as possible.
After more than two full days of debate, deliberation, and consideration, Republican leaders have obstructed and objected their way to preventing voting on even a single amendment.
- To put that in perspective, in 2003, the Republican-controlled Senate debated President Bush’s tax cut proposal for a total of just two legislative days. And in 2005 they voted on a full tax-cut reconciliation bill after just two days of debate as well.
Delaying change to death might be a time-honored Washington tactic for winning political points – but it's a guaranteed loss for American families.
- Each day reform is delayed, more than 14,000 Americans lose their insurance.
- Health care costs are rising 3 times faster than wages, premiums have doubled over the past decade, and costs for American families will continue to skyrocket without action
- A recent media article reported that many small businesses may see their premiums rise 15 percent over the coming year – twice the rate they rose last year.
Since the last time many of these people killed health insurance reform:
- Individual and family premiums have each more than doubled.
- National health expenditures have tripled.
- Health care costs have consumed a growing portion of the national GDP.
- And millions of Americans have lost insurance.
So while we continue to welcome a robust and constructive debate, we won’t sit idly by as defenders of the status quo continue to execute their self-professed strategy to "delay, define, and derail" reform at all costs.

Christmas at the White House

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:57:34 EST

12/2/09 http://obamafoodorama.blogspot.com/

The Holiday Gingerbread White House: The Kitchen Garden in Marzipan, A Shadow Box of The State Dining Room...and Bo!

An understated holiday...except for the stunning Gingerbread White House

First Lady Michelle Obama debuted the White House holiday decorations this afternoon, and in keeping with a nation that's involved in two wars and has a struggling economy, she chose Reflect, Rejoice, Renew for the 2009 holiday theme. There's an elegant--even spartan--decorating scheme in place at the White House, which uses ornaments recycled from past presidential administrations, and garlands made of lovely natural greenery and dried foodstuffs such as berries--including old roots taken from the White House Kitchen Garden. Each room that is bedecked has a different color palette, but all meld nature, White House history, and the green economy--even the electric Christmas lights are LED. And there are six living Christmas trees in place around the campus, which will be adopted by the National Park service after the holidays.

The traditional Gingerbread White House, however, pulls out all the stops. Exec. Pastry Chef Bill Yosses has achieved the stunning pinnacle of historic edible architecture, which is even more complicated than the two previous Gingerbread White Houses he's created. He explained the intricate process of construction, which used the skills of White House staff from both inside and outside the kitchen...but that interview is upcoming, with more photos; right now, this mini-photo gallery. (Yosses, above, with the amazing creation)

The Gingerbread White House is covered in white chocolate, and about 400 pounds, exact to White House architect James Hoban's original plans. It has the brilliant added elements of a marzipan model of the Kitchen Garden, complete with vegetables that were actually grown in the garden--radishes, carrots, cabbages, peas, cauliflower. There's also a shadow box view into the State Dining Room--with chocolate furniture--and of course, Bo the First Dog, front and center at the bottom of the steps of the South Portico. The only part of the Gingerbread White House that is not edible is the brass ceiling fixture in the mini State dining Room--and that's because it actually has working electricity.

Click on photo to get a full screen view to see Bo better!

To see more photos and blogs visit: http://obamafoodorama.blogspot.com/2009/12/blog-post.html

Reaction to President Barack Obama's plans for the Afghanistan war

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:53:35 EST

Some reaction to President Barack Obama's plans for the Afghanistan war:

12/2/09 AP

"The Afghanistan-Pakistan review led by the president has provided me with a clear military mission and the resources to accomplish our task. The clarity, commitment and resolve outlined in the president's address are critical steps toward bringing security to Afghanistan and eliminating terrorist safe havens that threaten regional and global security." — Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan.

___

"This is not a U.S. mission alone. There are 43 countries on the ground under NATO command and I am confident that other allies and partners will also make a substantial increase in their contributions." — NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

____

"I am pleased that he made clear that our resources are not unlimited and our commitment is not open-ended. ... The president drew an essential distinction between his approach to the war and that of the previous administration." — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

____

"I support the president's decision to follow the advice of Generals Petraeus and McChrystal in ordering a surge of forces into Afghanistan. ... We must ensure that the transition of responsibilities is based on conditions, not timelines." — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

___

"I think that Gen. McChrystal will be able to use the 30,000 effectively. More would have been better, but this is what the president has recommended and that's what we'll support." — Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo.

___

"The American Legion is opposed to any exit strategy that takes place before the mission in Afghanistan is accomplished ... To do otherwise would more correctly be called a 'surrender strategy' to which the Legion would be opposed." — Clarence E. Hill, the American Legion's national commander.

___

"That will be very, very difficult but necessary strategy." — United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

___

"I think we must take a few weeks to reflect — first off a few weeks to consult with our other European partners, and then a few weeks to decide what our form of participation would be." — Thierry Mariani, France's special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

___

"Canada welcomes the additional military and civilian resources the United States will deploy to Afghanistan, particularly to the south. Additional U.S. resources will help to provide a more secure environment for the Afghan people." — Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon.

___

"The need for additional troops only reinforces the need for timely VA and defense funding. Both the VA and defense budgets are now more than two months late, and our leaders in Congress must act quickly to ensure that we meet the needs of those brave enough to fight our nation's wars." — AMVETS, a veteran's advocacy group.

For the entire article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091202/ap_on_go_ot/us_us_afghanistan_quotes

Interview with General Paul Eaton

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:11:13 EST

Excerpt from HARDBALL with Chris Matthews interview with Gen. Paul Eaton (retired who served for more than 30 years in the US Army) after President Obama's speech at West Point on 12/1/09:

Gen. Eaton "I will not speak for the general officer core but I will speak for the bright peers that I have who for having witnessing the Bush administration and the Republican party the damage done to the armed forces of the United States from the last eight years. Anybody, anybody who blindly endorses the Republican party particularly the Republican party that we have today is just not a thinking American. The Republican party has done more damage to the armed forces of the United States than any party in my memory. "

Gen. Eaton "This president has touched a nerve and anybody who is paying attention to the way this man (Obama) operates, the competence and the competent people that he surrounds himself with it is so refreshing given the incompetent prosecution of warfare by the last administration. These guys have got hope, I mean the cadets have got real hope that they are going to be put into harms way by a man who knows what he is doing."

For the entire video:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/ns/msnbc_tv-hardball_with_chris_matthews#34233159

Are we winning or existing w/out a win?

"NERVIE" — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:12:15 EST

Today, in the preview video by Buck McKeon, http://www.youtube.com/user/BuckMcKeon

McKeon, our local Congressional representative, said he would be watching for the following points in President Obama’s speech:

Hopefully Obama will provide the number of troops requested by General McCrystal.

Having spoken to McCrystal, McKeon said that 400,000 internal security force would be required to secure the country and that there was ½ that number in Afghanistan right now. This would put a lot of people to work.

Time is another consideration: How soon will we be able to get the troops there?

McCrystal said we needed additional troops in the area w/in 1 year. We are 3 months behind in momentum, so catch up is required.

Winning is also a consideration.

Will the President say that we will have troops exiting after “winning” or “exiting (whether we win or not) Afghanistan w/in the 18 months”, which direction are we going. What is the exit strategy?

Meantime, we can only hope that Obama’s speech covers these concerns and Buck McKeon will find Obama’s momentum favorable for all Americans including our fighting troops in Afghanistan.

Looking forward to Obama’s speech, we can only pray that consensus from the right and left is coming.

AIDS is a Human Rights Issue

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:36:22 EST

World AIDS Day’ AIDS is a Human Rights Issue

12/1/09 Posted by: Vienna Colucci- amnestyusa.org

Today is twenthieth anniversary of the first World AIDS Day, established to commemorate those who have died of the disease and marshal attention to address the epidemic. The World AIDS Campaign has declared “Lead-Empower-Deliver“ to be the theme for this year.

For the last several years, AI has been zeroing in on the message that AIDS is a human rights issue. Human rights abuses place people at greater risk of contracting HIV, and, all too often, those living with HIV and AIDS are subjected to human rights abuses.

Check out Amnesty’s special web feature in honor of World AIDS Day.

Nowhere is the link between human rights abuses and HIV and AIDS clearer than in South Africa, where women, particularly those living in rural areas, face not only high HIV prevalence and high levels of sexual violence, but also widespread poverty. AI’s report, I am at the lowest end of all, draws on the stories of women who, having contracted HIV as a result of violence, must now overcome extreme poverty and disrcimination in order to obtain treatement.

Circling back to this year’s theme of leadership, Amnesty wants to know how governments measure up to our 10-point plan of action on HIV and AIDS and human rights. How is the U.S. doing? What changes would you like President-elect Obama to make to U.S. policy on HIV and AIDS when he takes office?

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Barack Obama has done many things to help stop HIV AIDS and to help people with HIV AIDS:

Candidate Obama video speaking about AIDS:
Link

10/30 Obama to lift HIV/AIDS travel ban:
Link

AHF Applauds Obma for Urging All Americans to get tested for HIV: Link

President Obama signs the Ryan White Act video:
Link

President Barack Obama and First Lady, Michelle, on Sunday released pictures of them being tested for HIV/AIDS three years ago on a trip to Kenya: Link

Stabilizing Afghanistan is worth another try

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:12:48 EST

11/30/09 San Jose Mercury News Editorial

Afghanistan is the thorniest of the many disastrous entanglements President Barack Obama inherited from George Bush. And there is no safe way out.

The easiest course of action in the short term would be to declare the war unwinnable and bring America's troops home. It would save money and appease liberal members of the president's party.

Instead, Obama is showing great political resolve. Tonight, in a nationally televised address, he is expected to ask Congress to authorize sending an additional 30,000 troops overseas. He will also ask NATO allies to contribute 10,000 troops to the cause of stabilizing a region that remains one of the greatest threats to U.S. and world security.

It's the best of a bad set of choices. Americans are understandably weary of the costly eight-year conflict, and the failure to capture Osama bin Laden still grates. In his campaign, Obama said Bush had fought the wrong war, focusing on Iraq when the real threat was still Afghanistan. He was right, but that won't make Afghanistan easy to win.

Yet critics who urge a pullout ignore the risks of ceding the nation to al-Qaida and Taliban forces, creating an even stronger base for attacks on the West than they enjoyed before 2001 — and heightening the risk of losing Pakistan, with its nuclear capability.

The Afghan government is corrupt and weak. While this makes it painful for the West to defend, it also means the government will quickly fall without a strong U.S. presence. The inevitable resurgence in terrorist activity would then be laid to the U.S. decision to abandon the country.

It's not just Obama who believes that to be true. His most experienced military advisers and foreign policy experts, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and CIA Director Leon Panetta, agree.

The growing destabilization in Pakistan is a factor here. The Pakistani government can play a pivotal role in the stabilization of Afghanistan — but if Afghanistan falls to the Taliban, Pakistan also is at grave risk, its nuclear weapons likely to fall into the worst possible hands. Leaving Afghanistan would embolden opposition forces there.

Obama's biggest challenge is defining the military's long-range mission. He must present a realistic set of goals that lead to eventually handing over military control to Afghan forces.

But the commitment of military and financial aid to President Hamid Karzai must be contingent on his reaching clear benchmarks as well, including separating himself from corrupt warlords. If Karzai can't live up to the goals, he'll never be strong enough to keep the Taliban and al-Qaida at bay. Continuing corruption of the current government will turn a U.S. troop surge into a hopeless gesture.

It may be hopeless anyway. Ask the Russians. But having invested so much, the U.S. must make one last, serious effort to bring stability. This is the plan Obama will present. It's the wisest move he can make, given the hand he was dealt.

90 Things President Obama Accomplished - The Media Didn't Report

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:54:54 EST

90 Things President Obama Accomplished - The Media Didn't Report

1. Ordered all federal agencies to undertake a study and make recommendations for ways to cut spending

   2. Ordered a review of all federal operations to identify and cut wasteful spending and practices

   3. Instituted enforcement for equal pay for women

   4. Beginning the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq

   5. Families of fallen soldiers have expenses covered to be on hand when the body arrives at Dover AFB

   6. Ended media blackout on war casualties; reporting full information

   7. Ended media blackout on covering the return of fallen soldiers to Dover AFB; the media is now permitted to do so pending adherence to respectful rules and approval of fallen soldier's family

   8. The White House and federal government are respecting the Freedom of Information Act

   9. Instructed all federal agencies to promote openness and transparency as much as possible

10. Limits on lobbyist's access to the White House

11. Limits on White House aides working for lobbyists after their tenure in the administration

12. Ended the previous stop-loss policy that kept soldiers in Iraq/Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date

13. Phasing out the expensive F-22 war plane and other outdated weapons systems, which weren't even used or needed in Iraq/Afghanistan

14. Removed restrictions on embryonic stem-cell research

15. Federal support for stem-cell and new biomedical research

16. New federal funding for science and research labs

17. States are permitted to enact federal fuel efficiency standards above federal standards

18. Increased infrastructure spending (roads, bridges, power plants) after years of neglect

19. Funds for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools

20. New funds for school construction

21. The prison at Guantanamo Bay is being phased out

22. US Auto industry rescue plan

23. Housing rescue plan

24. $789 billion economic stimulus plan

25. The public can meet with federal housing insurers to refinance (the new plan can be completed in one day) a mortgage if they are having trouble paying

26. US financial and banking rescue plan

27. The secret detention facilities in Eastern Europe and elsewhere are being closed

28. Ended the previous policy; the US now has a no torture policy and is in compliance with the Geneva Convention standards

29. Better body armor is now being provided to our troops

30. The missile defense program is being cut by $1.4 billion in 2010

31. Restarted the nuclear nonproliferation talks and building back up the nuclear inspection infrastructure/protocols

32. Reengaged in the treaties/agreements to protect the Antarctic

33. Reengaged in the agreements/talks on global warming and greenhouse gas emissions

34. Visited more countries and met with more world leaders than any president in his first six months in office

35. Successful release of US captain held by Somali pirates; authorized the SEALS to do their job

36. US Navy increasing patrols off Somali coast

37. Attractive tax write-offs for those who buy hybrid automobiles

38. Cash for clunkers program offers vouchers to trade in fuel inefficient, polluting old cars for new cars; stimulated auto sales

39. Announced plans to purchase fuel efficient American-made fleet for the federal government

40. Expanded the SCHIP program to cover health care for 4 million more children

41. Signed national service legislation; expanded national youth service program

42. Instituted a new policy on Cuba, allowing Cuban families to return home to visit loved ones

43. Ended the previous policy of not regulating and labeling carbon dioxide emissions

44. Expanding vaccination programs

45. Immediate and efficient response to the floods in North Dakota and other natural disasters

46. Closed offshore tax safe havens

47. Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals

48. Ended the previous policy of offering tax benefits to corporations who outsource American jobs; the new policy is to promote in-sourcing to bring jobs back

49. Ended the previous practice of protecting credit card companies; in place of it are new consumer protections from credit card industry's predatory practices

50. Energy producing plants must begin preparing to produce 15% of their energy from renewable sources

51. Lower drug costs for seniors

52. Ended the previous practice of forbidding Medicare from negotiating with drug manufacturers for cheaper drugs; the federal government is now realizing hundreds of millions in savings

53. Increasing pay and benefits for military personnel

54. Improved housing for military personnel

55. Initiating a new policy to promote federal hiring of military spouses

56. Improved conditions at Walter Reed Military Hospital and other military hospitals

57. Increasing student loans

58. Increasing opportunities in AmeriCorps program

59. Sent envoys to Middle East and other parts of the world that had been neglected for years; reengaging in multilateral and bilateral talks and diplomacy

60. Established a new cyber security office

61. Beginning the process of reforming and restructuring the military 20 years after the Cold War to a more modern fighting force; this includes new procurement policies, increasing size of military, new technology and cyber units and operations, etc.

62. Ended previous policy of awarding no-bid defense contracts

63. Ordered a review of hurricane and natural disaster preparedness

64. Established a National Performance Officer charged with saving the federal government money and making federal operations more efficient

65. Students struggling to make college loan payments can have their loans refinanced

66. Improving benefits for veterans

67. Many more press conferences and town halls and much more media access than previous administration

68. Instituted a new focus on mortgage fraud

69. The FDA is now regulating tobacco

70. Ended previous policy of cutting the FDA and circumventing FDA rules

71. Ended previous practice of having White House aides rewrite scientific and environmental rules, regulations, and reports

72. Authorized discussions with North Korea and private mission by Pres. Bill Clinton to secure the release of two Americans held in prisons

73. Authorized discussions with Myanmar and mission by Sen. Jim Web to secure the release of an American held captive

74. Making more loans available to small businesses

75. Established independent commission to make recommendations on slowing the costs of Medicare

76. Appointment of first Latina to the Supreme Court

77. Authorized construction/opening of additional health centers to care for veterans

78. Limited salaries of senior White House aides; cut to $100,000

79. Renewed loan guarantees for Israel

80. Changed the failing/status quo military command in Afghanistan

81. Deployed additional troops to Afghanistan

82. New Afghan War policy that limits aerial bombing and prioritizes aid, development of infrastructure, diplomacy, and good government practices by Afghans

83. Announced the long-term development of a national energy grid with renewable sources and cleaner, efficient energy production

84. Returned money authorized for refurbishment of White House offices and private living quarters

85. Paid for redecoration of White House living quarters out of his own pocket

86. Held first Seder in White House

87. Attempting to reform the nation's healthcare system which is the most expensive in the world yet leaves almost 50 million without health insurance and millions more under insured

88. Has put the ball in play for comprehensive immigration reform

89. Has announced his intention to push for energy reform

90. Has announced his intention to push for education reform

- dailykos

7 Things You Didn't Know About Senate Health Bill

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 13:44:04 EST

7 Things You Didn't Know About Senate Health Bill

11/30/09 Mary Agnes Carey, Phil Galewitz and Laurie McGinley -NPR

Pay attention: The "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act" — better known as the Senate health care overhaul bill – is chock full of interesting but little publicized provisions affecting consumers. Sure, the bill is mainly a blueprint for overhauling the insurance system. But look closely and you'll see a variety of items that would affect people from the cradle to old age – from breast pump use to retiree health benefits. It's a congressional tradition, adding pet interests that otherwise might not pass to a big bill that at least will be put up for a vote.

Yes, there's plenty of time to change the bill. But political analysts say a final overhaul bill would more likely look like this measure than the version already approved by the House because Senate Democrats barely could agree on sending it to the floor for debate. In short, there's not much political room for major changes.

Here are some examples of what lies in this 2,074-page bill:

Nursing Mothers Get A Break

Employers would be required to provide an unpaid "reasonable break time for nursing mothers" in the first year after giving birth. Women would be provided a private place, other than a bathroom, to use a breast pump. The provision exempts companies with fewer than 50 workers if the requirement would impose "an undue hardship," a determination left to the employer to make. To encourage businesses, the legislation would give them a tax credit toward the costs of providing a suitable space for women.

This provision was inserted by Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., who in June introduced the Breastfeeding Promotion Act. Merkley is promoting breast feeding partly as a way to cut health costs. He cites studies showing breast-fed children have a lower rate of disease and illness in their lifetime.

But employers see yet another expense. "Every additional mandated rule further burdens employers who are struggling to keep jobs afloat," says Neil Trautwein, vice president of the National Retail Federation.

Twenty-four states already have protections for nursing mothers in the workplace, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Learning To Be An Adult

Being a teenager is tough. The Senate wants to help with a provision allocating $400 million from 2010 to 2015 to help teens make the transition to adulthood.

The money goes to states primarily to set up sex education programs. But the money can also be used for "adult preparation" programs that promote "positive self esteem, relationship dynamics, friendships, dating, romantic involvement, marriage and family interaction."

In addition, the programs can teach financial literacy and other skills such as goal setting, decision-making and stress management. About $10 million of funding would go to "innovative youth pregnancy prevention strategies" in areas of the country with high teen birth rates.

The Personal Responsibility Education for Adulthood Training funding was approved as an amendment in the Senate Finance Committee. Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine joined all the Democrats in passing it.

Retiree Health Benefits

The Senate bill includes a provision designed to ease out-of-pocket costs for retirees who are under 65 but who still get health insurance from their former employer. The bill would create a temporary "reinsurance" program under which the government would pick up 80 percent of some high-cost insurance claims filed by retirees. Employers would use the savings only to make retirees' coverage more affordable by reducing their share of premiums or other costs. The Senate bill would set aside $5 billion for the program; the House-passed bill, which has a similar provision, has a $10 billion pot. The proposal has wide support among employer groups and labor unions.

The same can't be said of another provision in both bills. Companies would have to pay a tax on the government subsidies they receive for providing their Medicare-eligible retirees with prescription drug coverage. These subsidies, included in the 2003 law that created the Medicare drug benefit, were designed to encourage companies to keep offering drug coverage. Now, if the subsidies are taxed to help pay for a health overhaul, they become much less attractive to employers; some companies might drop drug coverage for retirees altogether, warned the American Benefits Council, an employer group, and the AFL-CIO in a joint letter to Congress. If that happened, the retirees would get their drug coverage from Medicare. Critics say that would ultimately cost the government more money than it would recoup by taxing the subsidies.

Promoting Use Of Bone Density Scans

Rapid increases in Medicare payments for imaging services led lawmakers to reduce payments for some services, including those that test bone density.

The Senate bill is trying to boost payments, which have dropped by more than half since 2006, for a bone test known as dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) or bone densitometry. And those cuts have made it more difficult for patients to get access to the test, especially in physicians’ offices and clinics, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation. The Senate bill would increase rates to 70 percent of what Medicare paid in 2006.

Raising the payment for bone density scans is a priority for two senators whom Reid hopes to win over in his bid to get 60 votes for his health care plan: Blanche Lincoln, a moderate Democrat from Arkansas, and Olympia Snowe, a moderate Republican from Maine.

Setting ER Prices

Hospitals would have to limit how much they charge low-income uninsured emergency patients to the lowest amount they receive from insured patients for the same services.

The provision in the Senate bill comes more than six years after consumer groups in California and Texas began highlighting how hospitals were charging uninsured patients several times more for the same services as insured patients.

A 2007 study published in the journal Health Affairs showed that many "uninsured and other 'self-pay' patients for hospital services" were often charged "2 1/2 times what most health insurers actually paid and more than three times the hospital's Medicare-allowable costs." The study by Gerard Anderson of Johns Hopkins University also found the "gaps between rates charged to self-pay patients and those charged to other payers are much wider than they were in the mid-1980s."

In response to the criticism, many hospitals have set up programs for the uninsured to apply for financial assistance and obtain discounted care. The Senate provision would require all hospitals to have such programs.

Singing The Blues

Non-profit Blue Cross and Blue Shield health plans would have to spend at least 85 cents of every premium dollar on health services or forfeit their special federal tax deductions. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this provision in the Senate bill would cost the Blues' plans about $400 million over the next decade.

Historically, Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans received a tax-preferred status because they were created to provide a more significant “community benefit” than other insurance companies. But the Blues have come under increasing scrutiny from state and federal lawmakers and consumer watchdog groups for charging high rates, racking up profits (revenues over expenses) and paying top executives no differently than their for-profit insurance counterparts.

Several Blues' plans converted to for-profits in the past 15 years. Of the 39 Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans nationwide, 24 are now non-profit.

Transparency In Drug Pricing

Pharmaceutical benefit managers are a critical part of the nation’s health care system. Administering drug plans for more than 210 million insured Americans, they negotiate discounts on prescription drugs with retail pharmacies and wholesalers and also get rebates from drug makers.

At the urging of Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the Senate Finance Committee inserted language into its health bill that would force the benefit managers, known as PBMs, to disclose details of those negotiations – including how much of the savings were passed on to consumers.

Adding that transparency to drug pricing, Cantwell maintains, would help lower drug prices. “We want the consumer to benefit as greatly as possibly from the discounts that PBMs are helping to negotiate,” Cantwell said earlier this year.

The PBMs don’t see it that way. Cantwell’s amendment, they argue, would “allow competing drug manufacturers and pharmacies to learn prices their competitors charge and raise prices accordingly. It would decrease, not increase, competition among them,” Mark Merritt, president and chief executive officer of the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, wrote in a Nov. 24 letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Merritt’s group represents PBMs.

This story was produced through collaboration between NPR and Kaiser Health News (KHN), an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health-care policy research organization. The Kaiser Family Foundation is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

POTUS December Schedule

☮ CR ❤ — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 19:05:23 EST

12/1 President Obama will address the nation on the US troop situation in Afganistarn from West Point:

The news websites will carry the speech as well as C-SPAN and WhiteHouse.gov

******************

12/3

1:30 PM The White House will hold a jobs summit at the White House in December with 130 attendees for the jobs forum including small business owners, experts from green jobs sector, business leaders, academics, mayors and representatives from nonprofits."

CONFIRMED ATTENDEES INCLUDE: Eric Schmidt, Google; Randall Stevenson, AT&T; Surya Mohapatra, Qwest ; Frederick Smith, Fed Ex; Brian Roberts, Comcast; Bob Iger, Disney; James McNerney, Boeing; Andrew Livens, Dow; Peter Solmssen, Siemens; Stephanie Burns, Dow Corning; Phaedra Ellis Lamkins, Green for All; Reed Hundt, Coalition for the Green Bank; Larry Mishel, EPI; Alan Blinder, Princeton; Paul Krugman, Princeton; Joe Stiglitz, Columbia; Bob Greenstein, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities; and Jeffrey Sachs, Columbia. PLUS SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS, including David Ickert, Air Tractor; Woody Hall, Diversapack; and Rose Wang, Binary Group. AND Anna Burger, Change to Win; Leo Gerard, United Steel Workers; Joe Hansen, United Food and Commercial Workers; Randi Weingarten, AFT; Mayor Frank Cownie, Des Moines; Mayor Julian Castro, San Antonio; and Mayor Ed Pawlowski, Allentown, Pa.

5:00 PM Barack Obama and Michelle Obama attend the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.

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12/4 President Barack Obama visits Allentown, PA to kickoff a months-long tour called the "White House to Main Street tour." Mr. Obama will speak to students, teachers, business owners and others at Lehigh Carbon Community College late in the morning.

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12/11/09 President Obama attends the Nobel Prize Award Ceremonies in Stockholm accompanied by his wife, Michelle, and his half-sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng and her husband, Konrad Ng.

*******************

12/13 Oprah Winfrey will usher in the holidays at the White House, visiting President Barack Obama and the first lady as they prepare for their family's first Christmas there, on Christmas at the White House: An Oprah Primetime Special, airing Sunday, December 13, at 10 p.m. ET on the ABC Television Network.

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12/18 President Obama attends the United Nations Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen

The United Nations Climate Change Conference will take place at the Bella Center in Copenhagen, Denmark, between December 7 and December 18, 2009.

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12/23 Obamas fly to Honolulu to spend the Christmas and New Year's holidays in the Islands. The president does not have any public events on his schedule. The Obamas return to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 2,

Obama at hoops game to see brother-in-law's team

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:42:13 EST

Obama at hoops game to see brother-in-law's team By HOPE YEN, AP

WASHINGTON – It was a family affair for President Barack Obama at the Oregon State-George Washington University basketball game Saturday.

Brother-in-law Craig Robinson is the Oregon State coach. And the president brought along first lady Michelle Obama, daughters Malia and Sasha, and mother-in-law Marian Robinson.

The family sat courtside in the half-full Smith Center, munching on popcorn as Oregon State (2-3) handed George Washington its first loss after four victories.

After leading comfortably for much of the game, OSU survived a late rally by GWU to win 64-57 in front of a boisterous crowd.

Naturally, the Obamas were intensely interested in the outcome. Obama and Mrs. Robinson clapped when OSU scored. Mrs. Obama smiled and clapped, too.

Obama, an avid basketball fan who likes to play the game himself as often as he can, spent the past two days out of public view, enjoying Thanksgiving at the White House with family and friends. After the game, the president returned to the White House.

President Barack Obama waves as he attends a college basketball game between George Washington University and Oregon State with his family in Washington, Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009.

Hawaii Opting Out Of HCReform Overhaul

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:20:04 EST

Hawaii Opting Out Of Health Care Overhaul

11/27/09 by Ben Markus - NPR

Hawaii wants out of the national health care overhaul because it already has one of the lowest uninsured rates in the country, thanks to its 35-year-old employer mandate system. Hawaii's congressional delegation inserted language into both House and Senate health care bills that provides explicit protection for the landmark Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act of 1974. It's apparently the only state looking for such an exemption from major health care overhaul.

MELISSA BLOCK, host:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Melissa Block.

Some people in Hawaii are watching the national health care debate with a been there/done that attitude. Hawaii has one of the country's lowest percentages of uninsured residents and passed its own health care redesign 35 years ago.

From Hawaii Public Radio, Ben Markus reports.

BEN MARKUS: Longtime Hawaii Congressman Neil Abercrombie wants to be clear: Hawaii is not trying to exempt itself from efforts to overhaul health care. But...

Representative NEIL ABERCROMBIE (Democrat, Hawaii): Should the happy circumstance take place that the national bill is better than ours, offers more benefits and is more reasonably priced and available than ours, why, then of course we'll rescind ours.

MARKUS: Hawaii was the first state to attempt universal coverage. It did it by instituting an employer mandate. In other words, all businesses big and small must provide health insurance for employees who work more than 20 hours a week. These days, only about eight percent of Hawaii's population is uninsured. That's half the national average and way ahead of states like Texas with 25 percent uninsured.

Congressman Abercrombie is joined in the fight by the rest of the state's long-term and subsequently powerful delegation. They've inserted explicit language protecting Hawaii's system in both the House and Senate versions of national health care overhaul.

Dr. GINNY PRESSLER (Executive, Hawaii Pacific Health): I certainly wouldn't want to question that wisdom.

MARKUS: That's Ginny Pressler. She's a high-ranking hospital executive and an advocate for Hawaii's uninsured. Pressler has been an influential voice in the Hawaii health care debate for many years. She says there's a lot worth protecting.

Dr. PRESSLER: We do have good health care and access to health care and the lowest cost per enrolling in Medicare anywhere in the nation. And again for our commercial payers, we have the second lowest premiums anywhere in the nation.

MARKUS: Still, Pressler says Hawaii's not immune to the growing cost of health care, a burden that forces some companies to find ways around the mandate.

MARKUS: Here at the Waikiki Health Center, it's a busy morning. The center caters to low-income and homeless patients. Through this recession it's seen a tenfold increase in workload as the newly jobless lose their employer provided insurance.

Waiting in line is Jason Samson(ph). He was recently laid off from a local detail shop. To get treatment, he must first sit down with Gari Gorman(ph), an eligibility coordinator. Samson tells her that despite working full time, he didn't get insurance.

Ms. GARI GORMAN (Eligibility Coordinator, Waikiki Health Center): Okay, so they never offered any kind of health insurance at all.

Mr. JASON SAMSON: They told me after 30 days that I would be getting in, but I never got no health card, insurance card, anything like that. And they never took it out of none of my paychecks.

MARKUS: The health center says they see a lot of this - companies withholding insurance against state law. They also hear of employers scaling back hours to avoid the mandate.

Sam Slom is a small businessman and a Republican state senator. He says the mandate has put Hawaii companies who follow the rules at a disadvantage, probably forcing some out of business altogether.

Senator SAM SLOM (Republican, Hawaii): And, you know, anecdotally you can tell stories about that. But somebody says, well, show me. Show me where it actually happened and it's really hard to do.

MARKUS: It's hard to do because the employer mandate as he sees it is just one of many onerous mandates, taxes and regulations in Hawaii.

(Soundbite of restaurant)

MARKUS: Other businesses see the mandate as a benefit. At Murphy's Bar and Grill in downtown Honolulu, owner Don Murphy says he provides health insurance not just for individual employees, but in some cases their whole family.

Mr. DON MURPHY (Owner, Murphy's Bar and Grill): So, you know, you want to help them out. I mean, you know, when you do that, hopefully they stay. And, you know, I've got - god, I don't know - my average employee has probably been here over 10 years. So I've got a couple guys that have been with me since I opened: 22 years.

MARKUS: Though he readily admits the rising cost of that benefit is eating into the bottom line.

Jerry Russo, a health economist at the University of Hawaii, doesn't discount the mandate's impact on businesses. In the face of skyrocketing insurance premiums, he says Hawaii employers are unable to drop coverage.

Professor JERRY RUSSO (Chairman, Economics Department, University of Hawaii): And we've seen that on the U.S. mainland that a lot of employers have dropped coverage. Whereas in Hawaii it's continued to be stable. Now, that may have been a hardship for the employers. We don't really know.

MARKUS: Whether or not the mandate is a hardship on businesses, Russo believes it's quite amazing that a system designed 35 years ago still provides widespread coverage today. And it looks like that system may continue for decades to come - protection for Hawaii's employer mandate is still alive in both the House and Senate versions of health care overhaul.

‘Tis the season to be thankful

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 17:50:41 EST

‘Tis the season to be thankful

11/27/09 By Geoff Ziezulewicz, Stars and Stripes, Mideast edition

COMBAT OUTPOST CHARKH, Afghanistan – In most ways, Thanksgiving Day started out just like every day for the men of Company B, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment.

First Platoon greeted the sunny yet brisk morning air with a patrol through a local bazaar.

"It’s Thanksgiving," 1st Lt. Kevin Cory said to his men as they got ready to push out. "We’re thankful that it’s 9 a.m. and we’re cold."

Second platoon, to the bafflement of other soldiers, spent much of the day digging battle trenches for a class they were about to teach the Afghan National Army.

Like any other day, hot water for showers was in short supply; troops grumbled about a variety of things and made jokes about just how stoned on hashish their Afghan counterparts actually were.

Still, Cpl. Jason Huft of Clovis, N.M., had been preparing the holiday chow since the day before. And as the air warmed, T-bones sizzled on a grill fashioned out of a metal barrel.

Life isn’t easy at Combat Outpost Charkh in Logar province.

The showers are jury-rigged affairs. There’s no heat and wooden outhouses.

But despite this rough deployment and the longing that comes with being so close to going home, Thanksgiving came to COP Charkh.

Company commander Capt. Jason Wingeart pulled guard duty before serving chow with the other officers. At a base where most meals are basic, lukewarm affairs, soldiers dug into turkey, steak, ham, shrimp, macaroni and cheese and other holiday staples. It was the first time some had felt full in a long time.

"That was good as (expletive)," one soldier said to another after eating.

And despite the rough conditions, the soldiers said they had a lot to be thankful for. Mainly each other, and that they were all going home. Though there have been many injuries, the company has only lost one soldier in Charkh.

"I’m thankful that all my buddies are still alive and that I get to spend (Thanksgiving) with the guys to the left and right of me who watch my back every day," said 1st Platoon’s Spc. William Brown of Milwaukee. "And I’m thankful I’m leaving in two weeks."

"I’m thankful I didn’t get shot at today," said Pfc. Don Garab of Walkerton, Ind., of 3rd Platoon. "And for a good cigar."

"I’m thankful I’m not digging that foxhole anymore," said Spc. John McDermott, one of the unfortunate 2nd Platoon guys tasked with that most un-festive of duties.

"I’m thankful for ‘A cog’ scopes, M203’s and HEDP," 2nd Platoon’s Sgt. David Lloyd said, military-speak for his rifle scope, grenade launcher and ammunition. "They’ve saved our ass a lot."

Even Afghan army captain and battle-hardened ex-Mujahedeen fighter Capt. Raz Mohammad got a plate, eagerly digging into a mix of steak, greens and pie.

"It’s really good," he said between mouthfuls. "Everything I like."

Despite the grim conditions at COP Charkh, Sgt. Daniel Barsi of Utica, Ill., was thankful for his health and the security of America.

"The way I see things, everything could always be worse."

Meanwhile, in Washington, President Barack Obama telephoned 10 U.S. servicemen and women stationed in war zones Thursday, to thank them for their service.

The White House says Obama called two servicemembers each in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard. The servicemembers are stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Arabian Gulf.

Cultural life in Hawaii

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:40:43 EST

Doug asked me "What do people in Hawaii have for Thanksgiving?" I said that I would post the answer on CITA.

The seven inhabited islands that make up the state of Hawaii has as of 2005, an estimated population of 1,275,194 people. In 2008 the Census Bureau the breakdown of the population is that Asian Americans made up 38.5%, White Americans made up 27.1%, Multiracial Americans made up 21.4%, Pacific Islander Americans made up 9.0%, African Americans made up 2.4%, and American Indians made up 0.2% of the population.

When the immigrant workers came to Hawaii to work on the plantations they brought their language, customs and foods. The islands are pretty small so everyone has to get along. People had to learn each other's languages to get things accomplished. Today all the languages and customs are so intertwined that it is easy to get mixed up as to which word or custom is from which group. Pidgin English is a mix up of languages; in a sentence you might have Hawaiian, Japanese and Filipino words used all together. The Hawaiian and Japanese languages use the same sounds, like the word Hawaiian "Hemo" means to remove and I grew up thinking that it was a Japanese word. Now I have learned that African languages also have words that use the same sounds as Japanese and Hawaiian.

Peopled shared each other's foods and customs and again it all became intertwined. A Thanksgiving feast might have Hawaiian poke (seasoned raw fish), Japanese maki sushi (rice rolls with a filling and wrapped in a sheet of dried seaweed), a roast turkey with stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce, Chinese chicken salad, Korean kim chi, pumpkin pie and Hawaii Haupia (coconut pudding).

Hawaii is a pretty cool place cultural-wise. Rarely do you have locals who exclude the customs of the others. Everybody celebrates most of the holidays because it gives them another reason to party. Everybody is Chinese on Chinese New Year eating noodles for long life, Irish on St. Patrick's Day eating corned beef, etc.

I think that is partly President Obama's take on race and culture.

Holiday service: First family hands out food

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:41:58 EST

Holiday service: First family hands out food

11/26/09 POLITICO

The first family celebrated Thanksgiving by handing out turkeys, pumpkin pies, vegetables, stuffing and other Thanksgiving groceries Wednesday afternoon at Martha’s Table, just a few miles from the White House.

According to its website, “Martha’s Table’s mission is to help at-risk children, youth, families and individuals in our community improve their lives by providing educational programs, food, clothing, and enrichment opportunities." President Obama, First Lady Michelle, daughters Sasha, Malia and First Grandmother Marian Robinson were joined by about a dozen others, including Obama half-sister Maya Soetoro-Ng, her husband, Konrad Ng and their two daughters, Suhaila and Savita.

Pool reports: ”Malia was wearing a vest over her top with a scarf around her neck; Mrs. Obama a grey top and a scrarf draped around her shoulders; Obama, his oft-seen black jacket and Mrs. Robinson, a dark top.”

President Barack Obama stands next to his mother-in-law Marian Robinson, right, his daughter, Sasha and first lady Michelle Obama as they packing food for Thanksgiving at Martha's Table. AP

Native American Heritage Day

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:13:02 EST

The White House- Office of the Press Secretary

November 25, 2009

Statement by the President on Native American Heritage Day

“Tomorrow, Americans everywhere will observe our National Day of Thanksgiving. It will be a time of celebration and reflection as we gather with family and friends to count our blessings and remember those less fortunate. But it will also be a time to remember how this holiday began– as a harvest celebration between European settlers and the American Indians who had been living and thriving on the continent for thousands of years.”

“That is why on Friday, I encourage every American to join me in observing Native American Heritage Day. My Administration is committed to strengthening the nation to nation relationship with tribal governments. But it is also important for all of us to understand the rich culture, tradition and history of Native Americans and their status today- and to appreciate the contributions that First Americans have made, and will continue to make to our Nation.”

Thankful Quotes

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:49:21 EST

Here are some actual quotes on the subject "Thankful"

Gratitude is our most direct line to God and the angels. If we take the time, no matter how crazy and troubled we feel, we can find something to be thankful for.

    Terry Lynn Taylor

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Be thankful for the least gift, so shalt thou be meant to receive greater.

    Thomas a Kempis (1380 - 1471)

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Look to your health; and if you have it, praise God and value it next to a good conscience; for health is the second blessing that money cannot buy; therefore value it, and be thankful for it.

    Izaak Walton (1593 - 1683)

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In this world of sin and sorrow there is always something to be thankful for; as for me, I rejoice that I am not a Republican.

    H. L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)

State Dinner in Honor of India's PM Signh

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:45:13 EST

The State Dinner in Honor of India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh: The Menu, With Wine Pairings

11/24/09 ObamaFoodOrama.blogspot.com

A sustainable, regional, mostly vegetable menu--and curry gets a nod, in honor of India...
At left, Mrs. Obama discusses protocol and petit fours in the State Dining Room this afternoon, with the members of her new girls' mentoring and leadership program, during the press preview event for tonight's State Dinner in honor of India. Mrs. Obama actually gave a very serious and moving speech, which will be posted later. As your intrepid blogger predicted, Mrs. Obama mixed her china patterns for this evening, and is using Eisenhower China and Clinton State China for the service plates, and George W. Bush State China for the dinner plates.

Also as predicted, the china had meaning: President Eisenhower was the first president to visit India after it gained its independence. And both of the Clintons--Bill and Hillary--have been enormously useful to the Obamas and the administration. President Bush fostered a close relationship with India, too: He held a State dinner in Prime Minister Singh's honor in 2005.

No chefs at the menu preview...and no food, either
The ingredients for the State Dinner were sustainably sourced--and meant to represent American regional cuisine; there is no mention of the now-volatile word "organic" in any press guidance. The pears for the dessert were poached in honey from the White House beehive, and herbs and lettuces were harvested from the White House Kitchen Garden--which Ob Fo also predicted. Desserts, created by Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses, will be garnished with mint and verbena from the Kitchen Garden, too. The wines, of course, are all American, as is standard White House practice. Guest Chef Marcus Samuelsson helped Executive Chef Cristeta Comerford create the menu--but he wasn't present at the preview, nor was she. Nor were any of the dishes from the menu--save for a lone plate of Yosses's desserts. The preview event was a bit of a rugby scrum with so many journalists and photographers climbing over each other. But the menu is interesting--and more on that later, too.

For the State Dinner Menu: http://obamafoodorama.blogspot.com/2009/11/state-dinner-menu.html

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Remarks by the First Lady at Indian State Dinner Press Preview

Photos: http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Obama-hosts-first-State-Dinner-first-lady-Michelle-Obama-President-Barack-Obama-Gursharan-Kaur/ss/events/pl/112409statedinner/im:/091125/480/545afa31e497430ba7e54779764189a1/#photoViewer=/091125/480/f59cb9f7fcae481d924696773e4ef89d

Decision time in Afghanistan

The Bard of Wilmette — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:28:44 EST

After several weeks of gathering as much information as possible, President Obama is reportedly within a few days of announcing his revised approach regarding the war in Afghanistan. Obama has come under a lot of criticism for his alleged “dithering,” as some political opponents have famously put it. Maybe the president could have come to his decision one month earlier, but personally, I would prefer to have him “dither” for a little too long than to make a decision of this importance without first considering all the relevant information and the perspectives of his chief military and civilian advisors. I do not know what the president’s decision will be, but there are two certainties:

Whatever he decides to do will be wrong, in the opinion of many good and knowledgeable people, and
Wishing that we could turn back the clock to reverse past events does no good.

Most observers seem to believe that President Obama will opt to send more American troops to Afghanistan, but probably less than the 40,000 requested by General Stanley McChrystal. Even if this is true, that still leaves open a lot of questions regarding where the military personnel will be specifically deployed, and what will be the focus of their mission.

With my usual disclaimer that I have no personal military experience and have little knowledge of military affairs, I am of the opinion that it is time to scale down the mission. Fighting terrorism is important, and I generally supported President Bush’s decision to invade Afghanistan and bring down the Taliban regime that provided a base to Al Qaeda. I thought that it was most unfortunate that Mr. Bush switched his emphasis in his “war on terror” from Afghanistan to Iraq, because we might have had much more success in Afghanistan without the very expensive sideshow in the Middle East. However, as noted above, there is no turning back the clock, and President Obama has to deal with the situation as it now stands, rather than what we might think it should have been.

Advocates of a troop surge in Afghanistan, with a change in strategy focused on protecting the civilian population, note how well this approach worked in Iraq. If I believed that this would work as well in Afghanistan, I would probably support it. However, I am persuaded that an additional 40,000 troops –or even double that amount – will be nowhere near enough to do the job in Afghanistan. Compared to Afghanistan, Iraq is a very advanced country, with a well educated population and a strong middle class. The president of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, is hopelessly corrupt. Given the tribal nature of the Afghan population, Mr. Karzai is effectively not much more than the mayor of Kabul. He does not come even close to being widely recognized as the legitimate leader of his country.

One of my major objections to President Bush’s actions in the name of fighting terrorism was that, even if we assume honorable motives on the part of Mr. Bush, he was fiscally reckless. It seems amazing that, while the supposedly “conservative” George W. Bush was president, both the White House and its allies in Congress completely ignored the idea that wars are expensive and have to be paid for. Again, previous events cannot be reversed, but it has to be recognized now that there are limits to most resources. When it comes to the ability of the federal government to spend additional funds, those limits were unacknowledged several years ago, and as a result are more severe today.

This does not mean that we abandon Afghanistan as quickly as possible, regardless of the consequences, but it does mean that we have to factor into the decision the costs involved, and honestly explain how we will pay for it. This was largely ignored throughout the Bush years, but there is no excuse for ignoring it any longer (the same principle applies to health care reform and any other major spending proposals, but the subject for today is Afghanistan).

The way I see it, we cannot afford a counterinsurgency strategy of the type used in Iraq. I do not believe that the 40,000 additional troops requested by General McChrystal would be enough to make an effective difference. Besides that, our military forces have already been overcommitted. My impression is that doing the job “right” in Afghanistan would require hundreds of thousands of troops, and that is not going to happen. It is far too expensive, and in any case cannot be accomplished without resuming a military draft. I strongly doubt that there is much of an appetite for that among most Americans.

If General McChrystal or anybody else can make a convincing case that a maximum addition of 40,000 additional troops will produce lasting and positive results by the end of one additional year, I would like to hear it. Otherwise, we have to scale down our goals. We should continue to pursue known terrorists, and otherwise try to work with the less odious factions of the Taliban. America and its NATO allies might find it easier to work with local Afghan groups if it is clear that our presence there is diminishing. What about the argument that reducing the mission from the previously loftier goals to a more simple counterterrorism would mean that so many lives of brave Americans (and our allies) will have been “wasted?” Unfortunately, we cannot get those lives back, no matter what we do. What we can do is to stop compounding past mistakes.

Fun POTUS Korea trip details

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:57:05 EST

President Obama In South Korea: The Luncheon Menu...And Other Fun Details

11/20/09 ObamaFoodOrama.blogspot.com

President Obama gains weight in Asia, and Mrs. Obama magically appears for lunch in South Korea

President Obama attended a closed-press luncheon in South Korea with President Lee Myung-bak and First Lady Kim Yoon-ok during his visit to Seoul on Nov. 19. But Korean media is reporting that First Lady Michelle Obama also attended the lunch at the Cheongwadae, the seat of government--although Mrs. Obama was in the US the entire time President Obama was in Asia. Perhaps local media enthusiasm is to be excused--there was a massive welcoming ceremony when President Obama arrived in Seoul, and during lunch, he was goofing around a little bit--which was captured in the photo, above, taken in the banquet room. President Lee had just presented President Obama with a taekwondo outfit, including an honorary black belt, as a memento of his visit; the President learned the martial art as a younger man. Lee also handed over a gift for Mrs. Obama: A book of Korean recipes, because everyone knows she's a cooking enthusiast, apparently.

The menu is below, verbatim, from Korean media--because it includes excellent "insidery" details, including the fact that President Obama gained wight on his trip. Actually, the reverse is true--so much so that during his trip, President Obama had to answer questions about weight loss from NBC and CBS, and explain that his weight fluctuates by five pounds. Here's the (possibly) fictitious Korean luncheon menu:

Some of the notable dishes were sinseollo, bulgogi, marinated grilled beef; bibimbap, a rice dish with assorted vegetables and beef; japchae, glass noodles with assorted vegetables; and dubu-bugeotang, a dried pollack soup with tofu. Sinseollo, also known as Korean Royal Pot, is one of the most colorful Korean dishes, containing pan-fried beef, kimchi, shrimp pancakes, king trumpet mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms among other things. The dish was initially not considered due to possible complications while serving and eating, but the First Lady insisted, saying there's nothing like a good hot soup in a cold weather.

A total of six basic side dishes (called banchan) accompanied the main dishes; kimchi, water kimchi, assorted spinach, tangpyeongchae (mung bean jelly mixed with vegetables and beef), jangjorim (beef boiled in soysauce with egg) and dashima-toegak (dried kelp fried). Obama, for his part, showed how comfortable he was with chopsticks and repeatedly complimented the dishes served as “delicious.” When he commented that he is gaining weight due to the many Asian delicacies he has enjoyed on this trip at previous summits in China, Japan and now in Korea – Lee assured him that Korean dishes are low in calories. Spinach was included as it is known to be the favorite side dish of US Ambassador to Korea, Kathleen Stevens.

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Gochujan (chili paste) is mixed with honey and vinegar to create the Korean Gochujang sauce that is a popular condiment that would accompany many of the dishes mentioned in the article.

Affairs of state and affairs of the church

The Bard of Wilmette — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 19:54:20 EST

The story from Rhode Island about the bishop and the congressman is very interesting. The Roman Catholic bishop in Providence has publicly requested that Rep. Patrick Kennedy not take communion, because Mr. Kennedy's pro-choice position on abortion rights is contrary to church doctrine. Mr. Kennedy, of course, is a son of the late Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy, and a member of possibly the most famous Catholic family in America. Bishop Thomas Tobin has not only made this request to Mr. Kennedy, but he has ordered that all Catholic priests in Rhode Island refuse to offer communion to the supposedly wayward congressman.

I have no personal stake in this story. I am not Catholic, and while I am generally pro-choice regarding the permissibility of abortions, I do not have a problem with the government's authority to impose some restrictions after the early stages of a pregnancy. Besides that, I do not have daughters, so the issue is not likely to affect me personally. I say this not to take up the pro-life vs. pro-choice debate, but only to note that the outcome of the controversy about the bishop and the congressman does not directly concern me, except as an outside bystander.

It seems to me that in America, clerics of any denomination should be cautious about how they wander into political issues. The messages to their flock should focus on how they can do their best when it comes to their personal conduct. Be the best spouse/child/parent/friend/neighbor/etc. that you can be. Recognize that nobody is perfect, but emphasize that people should do the best that they can. The point is that the sermons and other messages should guide the members of the congregation on their personal behavior, not their political beliefs. If Congressman Kennedy was actually performing abortions, or paying somebody else directly for that purpose, I could understand the bishop's response. Instead, the bishop is taking this action because Congressman Kennedy supports others to have the right to make that decision (whether or not to voluntarily terminate a pregnancy) for themselves.

If the reader will excuse the cheap shot, it is my strong impression that in the numerous reported incidents of Catholic priests sexually molesting young boys, the usual reaction of the bishops was to cover up the crime, and quietly transfer the religiously devout child rapist to another unsuspecting community, hoping that the priest had learned his lesson. The lesson? The lesson appears to be that raping a child is a minor embarrassment, which they can hopefully cover up. Conversely, advocating a purely political position that conflicts with church doctrine is a major offense.

Congressman Kennedy is not about to ask for my advice, but in case he does, my suggestion is that he tell that bishop to get a hobby, but only one that is limited to consenting adults.

David Plouffe's book "The Audacity to win"

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:37:43 EST

I am on the third chapter of David Plouffe's book "The Audacity to Win" and I am enjoying it. It reads very well.

I feel compelled to compare it to Richard Wolffe's book "Renegade"; in Renegade you get a closer look as to being on the trail of the Obama campaign but in Plouffe's book you actually hear all the raw language spoken and feel the tense situations. The Obama team was not a bunch of dreamers who felt that Obama's success was inevitable they were prepared to give it their all and fail. Plouffes says that the prima dona mentality was common among candidates but that Obama is the exception and that the team never woke up dreading their candidate.

Psalms 109:8

"NERVIE" — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:17:42 EST

It may be considered a Bible war going on in the internet but ladies and gentlemen when someone markets teddy bears, t-shirts, with Psalms 109:8 on it in reference to President Barack Obama, it is time to turn up the serious valve and ask is this an American Jihad and where are the religious leaders when you need them to stand up and exhibit contentiousness against such a decree!

And what is the CIA, FBI and Secret Service doing about any of this?

Sarah Palin and other conservative heroes

The Bard of Wilmette — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:02:45 EST

The general impression I get from watching news programs these days is that Barack Obama’s popularity is slipping away, and that conversely, Sarah Palin is more popular than the Beatles and Elvis Presley combined at their respective primes. For those of us who admire Mr. Obama and hold little regard for Ms. Palin, it would seem that we are headed for some politically bleak times. This picture may not be completely false, but it is probably much less true than it might seem at the moment.

President Obama’s halo is a bit tarnished, which is inevitable for almost any new president, especially one who entered office accompanied by such high expectations. He has made a few missteps (which will be the subject of a later essay by yours truly) during his first year in office, but nothing he cannot recover from. As long as unemployment remains high – and realistically there is no quick fix for that – President Obama will get the blame. It appears that the economy is already in recovery, and when unemployment goes back down to more tolerable levels, it will likely get Obama’s public approval ratings back to the solidly favorable range. It may not happen soon enough for his party to avoid getting clobbered in the mid term elections next year, but it will happen.

As for Sarah Palin, she is going to make millions of dollars selling her book, but I cannot see her as a credible candidate for President in 2012, or any other year. There is an old cliché about how we underestimate her at our peril. I believe I used that line myself, in reference to Palin, during the campaign last year. Some of Palin’s conservative admirers like to compare her to Ronald Reagan, who also showed great skill with a right wing populist appeal, and was also underestimated by his political opponents. One of my favorite conservative pundits, Steve Chapman of the Chicago Tribune, has a great column comparing Sarah Palin with conservative patron saints Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan. Here is a link to that column:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-oped1119chapmannov19,0,4222240.column

To me, Sarah Palin more closely resembles Richard Nixon and George W. Bush, and in my opinion, Ms. Palin combines the worst qualities of each of them. Mr. Nixon had what I believe psychiatrists would call a paranoid personality. He was obsessed with the idea that anybody who criticized or disagreed with him was a personal enemy, and therefore, because he was the president, a traitor to the U.S. The fact that Nixon was also very bright, well read, and hard working was not enough to compensate for the serious deficiencies in his character. Mr. Bush was (is) almost the opposite of Mr. Nixon. He is more at ease with himself as a person, but was one of the most intellectually lazy presidents we have ever had. He acted out of a gut feeling of what he thought was right, and (being the “decider” as he famously put it) pursued his policies without much serious analysis. When he did receive advice that did not fit into his preconceived notions, he ignored it, often with tragic consequences. Sarah Palin has managed to combine Nixon’s persecution complex with Bush’s incredible ignorance and lack of curiosity .

Ms. Palin has a devoted following – enough to make her a rich author, and if she wants it, she could probably get a very lucrative job at Fox News. However, while perhaps 20% of the country absolutely loves Sarah Palin, I cannot see her ever making serious inroads on the other 80%.

The First Lady Honors Military Women

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:25:40 EST

11/18/09 Posted by Molly Fedick - WhiteHouse.gov

Veterans Day serves as a reminder to not only honor America's men in uniform, but also the women—the mothers, sisters, daughters, and grandmothers who, throughout history, broke barriers and endured hardships to serve our country. Today at the White House, First Lady Michelle Obama, along with Blue Star Mom Dr. Jill Biden, welcomed some of those women in celebration of their bravery and commitment to protecting our freedoms:

In this room alone, we have the first female four star general. We have the first woman in the Navy to be promoted to Master Chief. The first woman in the Army Reserve to be promoted to the general officer rank. We have the first woman in the Army to receive the Expert Field Medical Badge. We have the first African American woman to serve as Chief Nurse at Walter Reed Hospital. And so many more "firsts" and "onlys" -- and that's the result of your hard work and your courage and your persistence.

But we know these achievements aren’t yours alone. That's something that Jill and I have talked about, we've learned more about over the course of this year, because we know that service doesn’t just end with the person wearing the uniform. You all know that. We know that our servicemen and women’s sacrifices are their families' sacrifices as well. And many of you have spouses, partners, children, parents who stood by you and encouraged you and prayed for you every step of the way. And this day is their day too, as far as we're concerned. So let’s take a moment to recognize those members of our families who supported you in your service as well. (Applause.)
The First Lady continued, praising them not only for the good they've done, but for the good they have inspired in others:
But I hope you all know that your service -- that your legacy is more than just your own service. I hope that you know that your legacy will be measured in the service of every woman who follows in the trails that you've blazed -- every woman who benefits from your daring and determination. It will be measured in the inspiration that you provide to our daughters and our granddaughters -- and to our sons and our grandsons as well.
Because of you, when young women wonder how high they can rise in our military, they can look at General Ann Dunwoody and her four hard earned stars. That can see that, it's real. When they ask what kind of jobs they can do, they can look to women like all of you who’ve played just about every kind of role imaginable. And when they ask whether they can cut it -- whether they have what it takes to succeed -- all they have to do is to look at your lives, to look into your lives and to look at the careers that you've developed that inspire us all.

First Lady Michelle Obama attends a Women in the Military Tea in the East Room of the White House Nov. 18, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)

To view the video: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2009/11/18/so-many-firsts-and-onlys-first-lady-honors-military-women

10 yr old wants liberty and justice for ALL

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:32:33 EST

Will Phillips, 10-Year-Old, Won't Pledge Allegiance To A Country That Discriminates Against Gays

11/12/09 Huffington Post

UPDATE: Will Phillips appeared on CNN Monday morning with his father, Jay, to discuss his refusal to say the pledge of allegiance.

"I've grown up with a lot of people and I'm good friends with a lot of people who are gay and I think they should have the rights all people should, and I'm not going to swear that they do," the ten-year-old Phillips said.

Jay Phillips, asked if his son was prepared for the media attention, said his son saw it as an opportunity to raise awareness. "He felt that just because he's ten years old doesn't mean he doesn't have opinions, doesn't mean he doesn't have rights, and doesn't mean he can't make a difference."

Watch: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/12/10-year-old-wont-pledge-a_n_355709.html

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Will says that he wants to be a lawyer. He analyzed the meaning of the "Pledge of Allegiance" and decided that there was not liberty and justice for all. It is people like Will Phillips that take the stand and then change the world for the better.

Japan's Obama town ecstatic over presidential mention

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:52:07 EST

11/14/09 AFP

TOKYO (AFP) – US President Barack Obama charmed his Tokyo audience on Saturday with references to green tea ice cream, Japanese traditional hospitality and, of course, the small town that bears his name.

"I could not come here without sending my greetings and my gratitude to the citizens of Obama, Japan," said the president to the delight of the western Japan town that has turned its accidental fame into a cottage industry.

The ancient fishing town of 30,000, about 400 kilometres (250 miles) from Tokyo, has long supported its White House namesake, and some of its residents were in Tokyo to steal a glimpse of the president.

Wearing "I Love Obama" T-shirts, a small delegation braved rainy weather on a Tokyo sidewalk and waved as the presidential motorcade passed by.

"The president clearly looked at us and recognised us," said an excited Seiji Fujihara, who leads a dance troupe that on Friday performed a hula dance in honour of the president, who was born in Hawaii.

"I was so touched when President Obama mentioned our town," Fujihara gushed. "I felt goose bumps."

Obama in his speech Saturday recalled a childhood visit to Kamakura, a temple-studded town near Tokyo, where he "looked up at that centuries-old symbol of peace and tranquility, the great bronze Amida Buddha."

Then he quipped: "As a child, I was more focused on the matcha (green tea) ice cream. But I have never forgotten the warmth and hospitality that the Japanese people showed a young American far from home."

Obamania was alive and well among the audience -- where many hailed his personal charm and wide knowledge about the region.

"His voice was good. He spoke naturally. He has something that attracts people," said Yasuko Maki, a 60-year-old housewife.

Her husband, Akihiro, 66, agreed: "He covered every subject and explained how America will handle it. He intends to work as our partner. He is different from former US presidents."

Obama's Half-Brother Recasts Story Of Their Father

☮ CR ❤ — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 13:21:42 EST

11/13/09 Lousia Lim - NPR

It is a tale of two brothers, but no ordinary brothers. One is president of the United States; the other is his half-brother, who lives in China. As President Obama arrives this weekend in China, his half-brother recently released a semi-autobiographical novel, revealing the abusive nature of their father.

Mark Obama Ndesandjo's face bears an uncanny resemblance to his more famous sibling. His eyes are familiar, yet different.

Ndesandjo and Obama share the same father, but their lives have veered apart. Barack Obama hardly knew their father, who left when Barack was 2. But his younger half-brother Mark grew up in Kenya under the same roof as their violent authoritarian father.

"He managed to work his way up through ... sheer intellect, will and also, at the same time, persistence to go to Harvard and some very high levels in American society," Ndesandjo says of their father. "Then something happened. It was an explosive mixture of drink, maybe disappointment and an inability to understand his own demons that caused the domestic violence we had in our home."

Ndesandjo (pronounced de-SANZ-jo) wrestles with that legacy in his semi-autobiographical book Nairobi to Shenzhen. Like Obama, his mother was a white American, so the book describes his struggle with his multiracial identity. Like Obama, he went to university in the U.S., studying physics and math at Brown, then earning further degrees at Stanford and Emory.

But his academic success was overshadowed by those formative years in Kenya. He says the violence at home hardened him, making it difficult for him to forge relationships or even to look closely at himself.

"With me what happened is that I also didn't want anything to do with anything that had to do with my father. This could include aspects of African culture. It could be not wanting to be associated with the Obama name," Ndesandjo says.

After losing his marketing job in the U.S. after Sept. 11, 2001, Ndesandjo moved to China where he took refuge in music and community work. A gifted pianist, Ndesandjo recorded an album and he volunteers at a local orphanage. Last year, he married a Chinese woman.

But he says Barack Obama's election campaign turned his life upside down.

"I didn't want anything to do with American politics: It's scrappy, it's something that turns huge spotlights on everybody. But then slowly I began to see an atmosphere around the world that was moving from one which had been in fear towards one of hope," he says.

Indeed, the spotlight did turn on Ndesandjo. Last year he flew to Austin, Texas, using money he had been saving to buy a piano, to meet Barack Obama for the first time in many years. He says it was an emotional moment.

"Well, first I hugged him, and he looked at my moustache, and he said, 'Hey, what's this little thing here?' And I said, 'It's a moustache, dude.' Then he said, 'You have a little less hair than last time I saw you.' And I said to him, 'Well, so do you.' And he said, 'Oh I couldn't afford a haircut then.'"

His half-brother's election has allowed him to take pride in the Obama name, which he hadn't used for many years. Their father — who had six other children — died in a car crash in Kenya in 1982.

Barack Obama's 1995 memoir Dreams From My Father dwells on his absent father and how it shaped Barack's life story.

I didn't want anything to do with American politics: It's scrappy, it's something that turns huge spotlights on everybody. But then slowly I began to see an atmosphere around the world that was moving from one which had been in fear towards one of hope.

- Mark Obama Ndesandjo

For Obama and Ndesandjo, their father's shadow looms large over their lives. Back in 2004, Barack Obama described that influence in an NPR interview.

"There's a wonderful saying by Lyndon Johnson that every man is either trying to live up to his father's expectations or making up for his mistakes. I guess I'm sort of doing both. I think in some ways I still chase after his ghost a little bit," Obama said.

Ndesandjo calls Obama's reflections interesting.

"Well, I guess in my case I don't see myself chasing after his ghost. I think for a long time his ghost was chasing after me," he says.

These mirror-image reactions in a way reflect the relationship. These half-brothers have much that is shared — and much that is not. Ndesandjo is planning to meet his half-brother on his trip to China, which starts Sunday.

"I look at my brother — President Obama — and I'm so totally proud of all that he's been able to do. I'm extremely excited my brother is coming to China," he says.

In Dreams From My Father, Obama describes meeting Mark as being like "looking into a foggy mirror." All these years later, Ndesandjo says he finally hopes to wipe clean the fog from that mirror.

To hear the audio of the interview: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120387029&ft=1&f=1004

Obama announces Hawaii as site for 2011 APEC meetings

☮ CR ❤ — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 13:18:10 EST

State's political, economic leaders praise selection of Isles for 2011 summit

11/14/09 Robbie Dingeman - Honolulu Advertiser

President Obama's announcement last night that Honolulu will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation annual meeting in 2011 put his hometown at the center of one of his most important international initiatives.

Hawaii has been vying for months to host the gathering of 21 heads of government from the Asia-Pacific region who discuss the economy, trade and investments.

And last night, leaders from Washington, D.C., to Downtown Honolulu praised Hawai'i's selection as a way to put the state on the map as a serious international business meeting place where East meets West year-round.

East-West Center President Charles Morrison said the summit is expected to bring 19 heads of state, many Cabinet ministers and other high-ranking officials, and more than 10,000 participants.

Holding the leaders meeting in Hawai'i "attracts attention and excitement no amount of money can buy," said Morrison, who is attending this year's APEC meeting in Singapore.

"Hawai'i has never had anything remotely approaching an international meeting where the president of the U.S., president of China, prime minister of Japan, and many other heads of state come at the same time, not to mention something like 75 Cabinet officials, the heads of the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and World Trade Organization, and leading regional and global business people," Morrison said.

He added, "This may be arguably the biggest and most open international meeting of 2011, and it's in Hawai'i."

The 2011 event will be held from Nov. 12 to 20.

The president made the Hawai'i announcement to APEC leaders gathered in Singapore.

"When America hosts APEC in a few years, I look forward to seeing you all decked out in flowered shirts and grass skirts, because today I'm announcing that we are bringing this forum to my home state of Hawai'i in 2011," he said.

In comments to the APEC leaders, Obama stressed the critical importance of the region.

"Perhaps no connection between Asia-Pacific and the United States runs stronger or deeper than the economic ties we share," he said.

In his first major trip to Asia as president, Obama has called himself the "first Pacific president." He was born in Honolulu and lived here — except for four years in Indonesia — until he went to the Mainland for college.

"America's four top trading partners are now APEC members, with the countries that form the Association of Southeast Asian nations collectively making up the fifth," Obama said.

He noted that 60 percent of the goods and services the United States exports go to APEC nations — exports that support millions and millions of American jobs.

"The United States is also the largest export market for Asia, which has led to more affordable goods and services for American consumers," he added.

Obama earlier indicated that the United States will also be engaging with the four Trans-Pacific Partnership countries (Brunei, Chile, Singapore, New Zealand) with the goal of shaping a regional agreement that will have broad-based membership and the high standards worthy of a 21st century trade agreement.

"We also believe that continued integration of the economies of this region will benefit workers, consumers, and businesses in all of our nations," he said. "Together, with our South Korean friends, we will work through the issues necessary to move forward on a trade agreement with them."

The APEC meeting rotates among members and was first held in the United States near Seattle in 1993. That's where then-President Bill Clinton came up with the tradition of having the leaders wear outfits chosen by the host. The 2010 meeting will be held in Japan.

coup for tourism

The meeting here is seen as a coup for the state's visitor industry as it underscores Hawai'i as a good site for international business gatherings, especially for the Asia-Pacific region.

Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann last night said he was "ecstatic" that Honolulu had been selected to host the 2011 APEC Summit.

In addition to collaborating with the East-West Center and Hawai'i Tourism Authority on the proposal to host the conference, Hannemann said he lobbied for the effort in meetings with White House and State Department officials in June.

"When President Charles Morrison of the East-West Center first approached the city about collaborating on a proposal to host APEC, the key component was security," Hannemann said, and Honolulu beat out the two California cities there.

"Honolulu, and all of Hawai'i for that matter, will be on the world stage come 2011, and it will be our opportunity to show that we're more than sun, sand, sea, surf and the spirit of aloha," Hannemann said.

Aside from the immediate economic impact, Morrison said it opens a new line of business over the longer term for the state as "a truly world-class international center."

Gov. Linda Lingle said the selection of Hawai'i to host the APEC Leaders Meeting is "an affirmation of Hawai'i's strategic role as a leader in the Asia-Pacific region, and will help build a stronger economic foundation for Hawai'i's future."

"We appreciate President Obama selecting Hawai'i for this important meeting and recognizing the significant role Hawai'i plays as America's most diverse and strategically located state," she said.

U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye also praised the selection.

"The spotlight that will shine on Hawai'i during the APEC meetings will remind the world that our culture and strategic location is the ideal site to gather global leaders and debate the needs of a diverse society," he said.

Inouye said the state serves as a bridge between the East and the West, and "will help show our Asia-Pacific neighbors that the United States remains committed to collaborating on economic policy as the world emerges from international recession."

HTA president and chief executive officer Mike McCartney said the leaders meeting will help to combat the state's image as more of a place to play than work, often dubbed "the boondoggle effect."

"The APEC meetings will dispel that misconception and position Hawai'i as a global business destination," McCartney said. "The world will see that Hawai'i is an ideal place to conduct business due to our strategic location in the Pacific and our multi-cultural diversity."

economic benefits

State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert earlier said she does not yet have an estimate of what the economic value of having the international meeting here would be, but it is significant.

The last high-level international gathering for Honolulu was the Asian Development Bank meeting in 2001.

That meeting had stirred worries of violent protests that had erupted in other cities but the meeting went smoothly with only small non-violent demonstrations.

San Francisco, the Los Angeles-Orange County area, New York and Miami were being considered as possible venues for the conference. Earlier, Hawaii Convention Center's SMG general manager Joe Davis said the decision was narrowed to between Honolulu and the two California destinations weeks ago.

The 21 members of APEC are: Australia; Brunei; Canada; Indonesia; Japan; Republic of Korea; Malaysia; New Zealand; Philippines; Singapore; Thailand; the United States; Chinese Taipei; Hong Kong, China; People's Republic of China; Mexico; Papua New Guinea; Chile; Peru; Russia; and Vietnam.

City of Obama, Japan

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:05:12 EST

City of Obama, Japan

The city of Obama has received much publicity because it shares its name with that of U.S. President Barack Obama. It began when Obama as a Senator gave a 2006 interview to Japanese television network TBS where he noted that, when passing through customs in Narita Airport, an official looking at his visa said that he was from Obama.The Obama City Hall heard about the interview and the mayor, Toshio Murakami, sent Senator Obama a set of the city’s famous lacquer chopsticks, a DVD about the city and a letter wishing him the best. As Senator Obama's presidential campaign progressed, more local businesses began to organize primary parties and put up "Go Obama!" posters, sell "I love Obama" T-shirts, and produce manjū (a type of Japanese confectionery) with Senator Obama's face on them. A hula group began in the town in honour of Senator Obama's home state of Hawaii. The troupe visited Honolulu in June to perform at the Pan Pacific Festival.

President Obama has since thanked the town for their gifts and support, saying "I look forward to a future marked by the continued friendship of our two great nations and a shared commitment to a better, freer world".

There are a number of Japanese with the surname Obama. Though the American President is of Kenyan Luo heritage, it is not uncommon for Japanese and East African names to sound alike.

As a result of the victory by Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, the Mayor of Obama City announced to the Japanese press that he intends to commission a statue of Barack Obama to be put in front of the city hall "as a token of the great historical moment for the name Obama".

In addition, he has declared that November 4 will be an annual holiday in the city.

On January 20, 2009, the day that Barack Obama was sworn into office, the city of Obama celebrated with women dancing the hula at the Hagaji Temple to celebrate the inauguration.

(source: wikipedia)

Japan's Obama town welcomes president with Hawaiian dance

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:55:58 EST

Japan's Obama town welcomes president with Hawaiian dance

11/13/09 AFP

TOKYO (AFP) – When the US president arrived in Japan on Friday to kick off his first Asia tour in office, no-one was happier than his most fervent fans in the country -- the residents of the town of Obama.

To welcome the US leader, who spent part of his youth in Hawaii, and whose father was Kenyan, the town of 30,000 people dispatched its team of hula dancers to perform a dance outside the embassy of the African country.

The tropical-style welcome was actually performed several hours before Barack Obama's Air Force One touched down in a cold drizzle -- but the undeterred organisers suggested it was the symbolism that mattered.

The namesake of their ancient fishing town, which means "small shore" in Japanese, had been unable to make time to visit Obama town during his busy two-day trip, or even to watch the heartfelt Hawaiian welcome, they said.

"Security is so tight that we only hope to get a glance of the president at some point," said the group's leader, Seiji Fujihara, referring to the 16,000 police who are on duty in Tokyo during the state visit.

"We danced for friendship with Kenya and for the new ambassador," he said. "We also danced with the wish that we will meet President Obama."

Fujihara later said he and his dancers would wait again on Saturday to perform another show somewhere along Obama's route.

"We know it will be impossible to bring him to Obama," he said. "But we hope something will happen, and we are thrilled."

The people of Obama have rallied hard for the US President since his election campaign, creating a hula dance in his honour and distributing "I Love Obama" T-shirts.

The western Japan town, about 400 kilometres (250 miles) from Tokyo, has turned its accidental world fame into a cottage industry, selling presidential souvenirs and snacks, and enjoying a spike in tourism.

The town's officials had made every possible effort to contact Obama, sending him a gift of lacquer-coated chopsticks, the town's traditional craft, and offering him an invitation to the coastal settlement.

"The invitation was not accepted, due to the tight schedule of the president, but instead the US government invited the mayor to his speech," which is to be held in Tokyo on Saturday, a city official told AFP.

Obama Mayor Koji Matsuzaki gladly accepted the offer, she added.

POTUS at Elemendorf AFB

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:07:04 EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

Remarks by the President to Service Members, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Anchorage, Alasks

11/12/09 Elmendorf Air Force Base, Anchorage, Alaska

THE PRESIDENT: Hello, Elmendorf! (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Please -- thank you so much. Anybody who has a seat, go ahead and take a seat.

I want to thank General Troy for the introduction and for his extraordinary service; to Colonel Mark Camerer and your outstanding local leaders for welcoming me here today. And I want to give a shout-out to the United States Air Force Band of the Pacific. (Applause.)

I realize that your Commander, General Atkins, couldn’t be here. I’m told that he got called down to Hawaii -- shaka brah, what's up? (Laughter.) I grew up there, so I hope that he's getting as warm a welcome as I'm getting here.

I want to thank your senior enlisted leaders: Command Chief Master Sergeant Robert Moore, Chief Master Sergeant Tom Baker and Command Sergeant Major David Turnbull. Give them a big round of applause. (Applause.) And please give some applause to all the airmen and soldiers up here. They look terrific. (Applause.)

It is wonderful to be here at one of America’s great air bases. I have to tell you I'm also really excited because I had up until today visited 49 states. So this is officially my 50th state. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Love you --

THE PRESIDENT: I love you back. (Applause.) But we also have a lot of folks from Fort Richardson. (Applause.) We've got folks from all across Alaskan Command -- Air Force, Army, Navy, Coast Guard, United States Marines; Active, Guard and Reserve. (Applause.) We have our allies and friends from the Canadian armed forces. (Applause.)

I see -- I see many spouses here today. (Applause.) And I want you to know you are the backbone of our military families and we honor your service. (Applause.) And I'm thrilled to see the kids who are here today -- hey, guys, thank you. (Applause.) I know you’re proud of your mom and dad, but we’re all proud of you, too.

You know, we’re here in "America’s Last Frontier." And most of you are far from home. And I know your service is made a little easier by your unbelievable neighbors. So we want to thank your local and state leaders, Lieutenant Governor Craig Campbell, all the people of Anchorage and Alaska for their incredible support.

And we’re also joined today by a leader who is fighting for Alaska in Washington, and for you and all our men and women in uniform as a member of the Armed Services Committee and the Veterans Affairs Committee -- Mark Begich is here, Senator Mark Begich is in the house. Stand up, Mark, so everybody can see you. (Applause.)

Today, I’m on my way to Asia -- my first visit there as President. The crews are out there refueling Air Force One. But I didn’t want to just pass through. Because this is also, as I said, my first visit to Alaska and my first visit to Elmendorf. And I couldn’t come here without taking this opportunity to deliver a simple message -- a message of thanks to you and your families.

Now, these have been days of tribute. Two days ago, we gathered at Fort Hood and we honored 13 Americans taken from us: soldiers and caregivers; mothers and fathers; husbands and wives; sons and daughters, brothers and sisters. We grieved with families who have endured unimaginable loss. And we found inspiration in the wounded, their spirits unbowed, and in those who braved the bullets so that others might live.

Yesterday, we gathered at Arlington National Cemetery to salute proud veterans who served on foreign fields long ago and wounded warriors from today. And as citizens of a grateful nation, we are humbled by such service.

Today, we gather here, at Elmendorf. And we see the same spirit. It’s the spirit that I saw in the outstanding airmen and soldiers I met with a few moments ago. It’s the spirit that I see in all of you.

It’s your sense of service -- answering your country’s call, volunteering in a time of war knowing that you could be sent into harm’s way. That's a sense of responsibility on your part -- the belief that the blessings we cherish as Americans are not gifts that we take for granted, they are freedoms that are earned. And it’s your sense of unity -- coming from every corner of the country, from every color and every creed and every faith and every station -- to take care of each other, and to serve together, and to succeed together, as Americans. (Applause.)

So I’m here to say to all of you, all of you who serve, all the families who are here: Of all the privileges I have as President, I have no greater honor than serving as your Commander-in-Chief. (Applause.) We have the finest fighting force the world has ever known. And it’s because of you -- because we've got the finest personnel in the world. That's our most precious resource.

By being here all of you are joining a long line of service at Elmendorf -- from the liberation of Pacific islands during World War II through a long Cold War. You embody that creed: "faithful to a proud heritage, a tradition of honor, and a legacy of valor." And you uphold that legacy every day.

Twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year, you keep America’s skies safe. So we salute the 3rd Wing. And the 11th Air Force. (Applause.)

You project power across the Pacific, returning just recently from Guam: the 90th Fighter Squadron -- the "Dicemen." (Applause.) And the 525th Fighter Squadron -- the “Bulldogs.” (Applause.) And all the maintenance troops who support them. Welcome home. (Applause.)

And when disaster strikes -- whether a typhoon in the Philippines or an earthquake in Samoa -- you’re there, delivering the relief that saves lives. So thank you "Firebirds." (Applause.)

Today, we also send our thoughts and prayers to all those who at this very moment are serving on the front lines. (Applause.) There are airmen from Elmendorf in every corner of the world. They’re soldiers from Fort Richardson: military police in Iraq -- (applause) -- the 4th Brigade Combat Team in Afghanistan. (Applause.)

Fort Rich paratroopers are no strangers to tough assignments. (Applause.) A few years back, you all spent 14 months in Iraq. Now, they’re working to bring stability and security to eastern Afghanistan -- building roads and medical clinics, renovating schools, protecting the Afghan people and giving them a chance at a better future. They are doing a terrific job and we salute them.

But with services comes sacrifice. All of you know this. You’ve made the most profound commitment a person can make. You’ve pledged to dedicate your life to your country. And perhaps give your life for it. Here at Elmendorf and Fort Richardson, some have.

They’re airmen like Staff Sergeant Timothy Bowles, who -- when a comrade fell sick -- volunteered to take his place on the patrol in Afghanistan that would end up taking his life.

They're soldiers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team, like the husband and father who gave his life in Afghanistan last week -- Specialist Julian Berisford.

And citizens of this state, like Alaska Native Corporal Gregory Fleury. Raised in Anchorage, he joined the Marines and served two tours in Iraq. He loved the Corps, he loved Alaska, so much so that he carried the state flag with him everywhere. It was with him last month when he was killed in those helicopter crashes in Afghanistan.

A little while ago, I had the honor of meeting Greg’s family, Donna and Christopher, and his grandfather Albert. And I expressed the gratitude of our nation, and we thank them for being with us here today. Donna, Albert, please stand. (Applause.)

There are no words that are strong enough and no tribute worthy enough to match the magnitude of such service. But to you and all who serve, I say this: The American people thank you. We honor you. And just as you have fulfilled your responsibilities to your nation, your nation will fulfill its responsibilities to you.

So as your Commander-in-Chief, here’s the commitment I make to you. We’ll make sure you can meet the missions we ask of you. That’s why we’re increasing the defense budget, including spending on the Air Force and the Army. (Applause.) We’ll make sure we have the right force structure. So we’ve halted reductions in the Air Force, increased the size of the Army ahead of schedule and also approved a temporary increase in the Army.

We’ll spend our defense dollars wisely. So we’re cutting tens of billions of dollars in waste and projects that even the Pentagon says it doesn’t need -- money that's better spent on taking care of you and your families and building the 21st century military that we do need.

I want you guys to understand I will never hesitate to use force to protect the American people or our vital interests. (Applause.) But I also make you this promise: I will not risk your lives unless it is necessary to America's vital interest. (Applause.)

And if it is necessary, the United States of America will have your back. We will give you the strategy and the clear mission you deserve. We will give you the equipment and support that you need to get the job done. And that includes public support back home. That is a promise that I make to you. (Applause.)

And as you meet your missions around the world, we will take care of your families here at home. That’s why the First Lady, Michelle, has been visiting bases across the country -- go Michelle. (Laughter and applause.) Your family is a priority for our family. So we’re increasing pay. We’re increasing child care. We’re increasing support to help spouses and families deal with the stress and separation of war. (Applause.)

And finally, we pledge to be there when you come home. We’re improving care for our wounded warriors, especially those with PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injuries. I want to salute the outstanding work you do at the hospital here on base, including your new TBI clinic. Thank you for giving our wounded warriors the world-class care they deserve. (Applause.)

We’re funding the Post-9/11 GI Bill -- (applause) -- because we want to give -- we want to give your families the chance to pursue your dreams. And we’re making the biggest commitment to our veterans -- the largest percentage increase in the VA budget in more than 30 years. (Applause.)

So these are the commitments I'm making to you. Because you’ve always taken care of America, and America must has to take care of you back. America’s obligation to our military -- as we saw this week -- is a sacred trust that we are honor-bound to uphold.

It’s the sacred trust that brought a nation together this week around 13 battlefield crosses. It’s the sacred trust that leads us to pause, on that November day, to give thanks for all those who have served before us. It’s the sacred trust that brings me here -- to say thank you for serving today, thank you to you and your families for all you do to protect this country we love.

*******************

Clarification:

At the begining of his speech at Elemendorf, President Obama said "Shaka brah. What's up?" The "shaka" sign is a common hand signal of greeting in Hawaii consisting of extending the thumb and pinkie while keeping the three middle fingers curled in, and raising the hand as in salutation with the back of the hand facing the person that is being greeted.

Hatoyama, Obama agree to strengthen Japan-U.S. alliance

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 10:52:48 EST

Hatoyama, Obama agree to strengthen Japan-U.S. alliance, delay decision on Futenma

11/13/09 Mainichi Daily News (Japan)

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, right, shakes hands with visiting U.S. President Barack Obama at the beginning of their summit at the prime minister's office on Friday evening. (Mainichi)

Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and U.S. President Barack Obama agreed Friday to step up bilateral cooperation in combating global warming and pursuing nuclear disarmament with the Japan-U.S. alliance as the core of such efforts.

But the two leaders postponed a final decision on the relocation of U.S. Air Station Futenma, a sticky bilateral issue.

Hatoyama held the 90-minute summit with Obama after he arrived at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Friday evening on the first leg of his Asia tour. It was Obama's first visit to Japan since he took office in January.

During the summit, Hatoyama and Obama agreed to strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance, and confirmed that they will step up cooperation in working on global issues such as climate change and nuclear disarmament.

The two leaders also agreed to set up a ministerial working group at an early date to settle the bilateral dispute on the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.

Hatoyama told Obama that his ruling Democratic Party of Japan pledged during the campaign for the Aug. 30 general election to seek relocation of Futenma base out of Okinawa Prefecture and out of the country.

At a subsequent joint news conference, the prime minister underscored the importance of the Japan-U.S. alliance. "The Japan-U.S. alliance is the foundation of Japan's diplomacy. We'd like to develop the alliance into a more constructive and future-oriented one."

The president also said the bilateral alliance is the axis of efforts toward stability and prosperity for not only the two countries but the whole Asia-Pacific region.

Moreover, Hatoyama urged the United States to be involved in an East Asian Community that the prime minister has proposed.

While stressing that he and Hatoyama share the vision of a world without nuclear weapons, Obama said the United States will maintain its nuclear deterrence for its allies as long as such weapons exist.

Even though he expressed hope that he will visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Obama denied that he has any plan to visit the two atom-bombed cities in the immediate future.

The president expressed gratitude for Hatoyama's offer to extend 5 billion dollars in assistance for reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan over the next five years.

APEC ministers plot ways to sustain recovery

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:22:05 EST

11/12/09 Mainichi Daily News (Japan)

SINGAPORE (AP) -- Nations must temper stimulus spending, ensure stable growth and strengthen financial systems to ensure a prosperous global economy in the post-crisis period, Asia-Pacific ministers said Thursday.

Finance ministers from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum's 21 member economies huddled Thursday in Singapore to discuss the pressing challenge of finding ways to sustain growth and encourage free trade at a time of fragile economic recovery.

The weeklong forum culminates in a weekend leaders' summit weekend that includes President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, among others from Pacific Rim nations.

Restoring growth potential, withdrawing stimulus packages and meeting the region's massive infrastructure needs are key challenges facing the world economy after the crisis subsides, said a joint statement due to be released by the finance ministers.

A draft of the statement, obtained by The Associated Press, said that reducing public sector debt will require more than "the mere phasing out of stimulus measures." It will need lower budget deficits and reforms that support economic growth, the draft said.

The ministers agreed to "undertake monetary policies" that take into account flexible exchange rates.

The statement also called for freer trade and warned against resorting to protectionism.

"We are committed to supporting open trade and investment to advance Asia-Pacific and global prosperity and growth ... and (we) will actively resist projectionist measures," the proposed statement said.

The ministers also commit to strengthen financial supervision and regulations to prevent excess credit growth, blamed for the biggest financial crisis the world has seen since the 1930s, the draft said.

New Zealand Finance Minister Bill English told reporters New Zealand is gradually withdrawing stimulus and new spending in 2010.

"We are pulling back from pumping money in," he said. "The concern is that the U.S. needs to keep stimulating their economy because it's in a pretty bad shape. We are in a better shape, we can afford to pull back and get a more balanced recovery so that the private sector can get up and running, providing new jobs."

English said the impact of the weak U.S. economy has been cushioned by robust Asian economies, especially China.

"We are on the road to recovery but there are going to be a few bumps along the road," he said.

A main focus for the regional dialogue remains efforts to create an Asia-Pacific free trade area, which would account for about half the world's exports and imports if it becomes reality.

Some ministers expressed optimism that Obama would support the plan given the deadlock in World Trade Organization talks.

But the plan is still some years away because of reluctance among some members, especially in Southeast Asia, to sign on to an agreement that would be dominated by the U.S.

"I think it's a vision that any region could aspire to but whether or not it will be achievable and when" remains to be seen, said Surin Pitsuwan, the secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

"There are many, many ideas floating around ... but we have to move very, very incrementally and carefully," he said.

APEC was founded 20 years ago to promote greater trade and integration around the Pacific Rim. Its scope since has expanded to encompass a wide range of issues, including climate change, energy security and food security for the millions of vulnerable poor in the region.

In a significant breakthrough, APEC government officials agreed that leaders should discuss abolishing trade restrictions on food. The plan was recommended by the APEC Business Advisory Council, or ABAC, a council of regional business leaders.

ABAC says free trade in food would allow APEC members to use one another's strengths to produce the best and cheapest food for all.

"We have finally got to an agreement with officials that this should go on at a very high level dialogue ... we are also calling for rules to make leaders end export controls," said John Denton, an ABAC official.

If the plan takes off, Thai rice could be imported in any amount by any APEC member. Currently, many countries, including the Philippines, Japan and South Korea, restrict rice imports to protect their farmers.

***********

I will be posting news coverage of POTUS' asian trip via Japan's Mainichi Daily News site

Congress is full of idiots in both parties

The Bard of Wilmette — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:06:26 EST

Liberal pundit E. J. Dionne has an excellent column in today’s Washington Post. Regarding the ongoing health care reform efforts in Congress, there has been a lot of chatter about “perfect” becoming the enemy of the good. This has been a concern of mine for some months. Here is a link to Mr. Dionne’s column:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/11/AR2009111122256.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter

If any kind of health care reform does get passed into law, the one certainty is that the final product will not be ideal by anybody’s reckoning. I have said in previous blog posts that the biggest obstacles to health care reform are those who insist that the bill contain certain characteristics, such as a “robust public option.” These people – including former Democratic Party leader Howard Dean and interim U.S. Senator Roland Burris (the choice of disgraced former Illinois Governor Blagojevich to fill the unexpired senate term of Barack Obama) – have made clear that they would rather see all reform efforts fail than to have what they believe is half-hearted reform pass. In a way, I have more respect for somebody like Senator Jim DeMint, who at least makes no serious pretense to being anything other than a political enemy of President Obama. If Obama’s presidency fails to achieve its major goals, it will be more due to his supposed allies (such as Dean and Burris) than to his overt opponents (such as DeMint). Reform can pass without any Republican support, but in order for that to happen, the Democrats have to able to unite behind something. As a practical matter, this means accepting the reality that many Democrats representing relatively conservative states and districts cannot support all the provisions favored by their more left-leaning colleagues.

If there is going to be any kind of health care reform bill that clears Congress, it will almost certainly contain some degree of restriction on taxpayer-financed abortions, and it will quite likely not provide for a public option, except perhaps one based on future contingencies. It would still be a major achievement, both in terms of politics and public policy, to get health care reform that extends coverage to all Americans, is fiscally neutral, and controls overall health care costs. This can be done, but not if side shows about the availability of abortions and the public option control the debate.

Public opinion surveys have consistently shown that most Americans have a low regard for Congress, and the contempt is well deserved. Most Republicans in Congress are more focused on opposing Obama, no matter what his policies are. They largely act like Rush Limbaugh, even if they generally do so in more polite language. Like Mr. Limbaugh, they want Obama to fail, even if that would be detrimental to the national interest. Many Democrats are no better. They are so obsessed with their own pet causes (in most cases, their reelection) that they are oblivious to the negative consequences of their own narrow focus. As for President Obama, he has to work with Congress, for all of its imperfections. He has to treat them (both parties and both houses of Congress) with more respect than they deserve… even though that respect does not appear to be rewarded. In the long run, this gives him the best odds for a successful presidency. I think that Obama knows this, and he acts accordingly. He cannot say this, but I can: Congress does not deserve much respect from the American people. If health care reform completely fails, it will be the failure of the Democratic leadership, and they will have themselves to blame if their party is swept out of power in the 2010 elections.

Veterans Day....Armistice Day

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:15:23 EST

Armistice Day also known as Veterans Day and Remembrance Day

November 11 and commemorates the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front, which took effect at eleven o'clock in the morning — the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" 1918.

The date was declared a national holiday in many allied nations, to commemorate those members of the armed forces who were killed during war.

Obama heads to Asia next week

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:35:36 EST

Obama heads to Asia next week

11/10/09 UPI

WASHINGTON, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- Renewing alliances and forging new partnerships are key goals for U.S. President Barack Obama when he makes his first trip to Asia, a senior official said.

"(The) president looks forward to this attempt to really renew America's alliances in the region, to continue to forge new partnerships, and to make progress on a whole series of issues," including economic recovery, Afghanistan, energy and climate change, and nuclear non-proliferation, Ben Rhodes, deputy national security adviser, said during a briefing.

The trip starts Nov. 12 with a visit to troops at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska before Obama's first Asian stop in Tokyo Nov. 13, Rhodes said during a briefing Monday. Obama will meet with several leaders bilaterally in Asian cities, as well as participate in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit and Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Among the cities Obama is scheduled to visit are Singapore and Beijing.

While attending the APEC summit, Obama will meet with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Rhodes said.

After a bilateral meeting with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Seoul Nov. 19, Obama will return to the United States.

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The WhiteHouse.gov has a site dedicated to President Obama's Novemeber asian trip:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy/asia

Non-Profit Fisher House needs your donation

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:54:27 EST

** Please consider donating to The Fisher House **

Their program is a private-public partnership that supports America's military in their time of need.

Members of the military and their families are stationed worldwide and must often travel great distances for specialized medical care, Fisher House Foundation donates "comfort homes," built on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers. These homes enable family members to be close to a loved one at the most stressful times - during the hospitalization for an unexpected illness, disease, or injury.

There is at least one Fisher House at every major military medical center to assist families in need and to ensure that they are provided with the comforts of home in a supportive environment. Annually, the Fisher House program serves more than 10,000 families, and have made available nearly three million days of lodging to family members since the program originated in 1990. By law, there is no charge for any family to stay at a Fisher House operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs; and Fisher House Foundation uses donations to reimburse the individual Fisher Houses operated by the Army, Navy, and Air Force. No family pays to stay at any Fisher House!

You can even donate your frequent flyer miles via the Fisher House "HERO MILES" program.

Mail your donation payable to: " Fisher House™ Foundation" :

Fisher House™ Foundation, Inc.
111 Rockville Pike, Suite 420
Rockville, MD 20850-5168

Email: info@fisherhouse.org

Ph: (301) 294-8560 or toll-free (888) 294-8560

Fax: (301) 294-8562

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Obama's Fort Hood visit part of presidential tradition of offering comfort in tragedy

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:32:59 EST

Excerpts from the article:

11/10/09 By TODD J. GILLMAN / The Dallas Morning New

WASHINGTON – When Barack Obama stands today before the mourning children, spouses and comrades of those cut down last week at Fort Hood, he will confront one of the most delicate and painful duties a president undertakes.

Only a president can offer the condolences of a nation. In a moment of crisis and sorrow and anger, only a president can soothe raw emotions, allay fears, elevate a senseless act into a call to action, and offer the assurance that – as his aides put it Monday – no stone will be left unturned.

This is by far the biggest test of Obama's ability to fulfill the role of consoler in chief.

The Fort Hood massacre is the worst single tragedy on his watch. And – because the victims and the shooter were soldiers, and because the suspect is Muslim and Obama has put such a premium on repairing relations with the Muslim world – the expectations on him, as commander in chief, are especially high.

"He's taking a message from the American people as a whole to the victims and their families," said Martha Joynt Kumar, a Towson University professor who studies presidential communications. "He represents the American people and can express the feelings of pain and tragedy and put it into words."

Standing before a sea of grieving Americans, acknowledging communal pain, is a task presidents have always undertaken.

....................

The president and First Lady Michelle Obama took off from Andrews Air Force Base at 8:24 a.m. Texas time. They landed at Robert Gray Army Air Field at 11:17 a.m.

Obama and his speech writers were still polishing his remarks en route to Fort Hood.

"Obviously, this is a very solemn event," spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters aboard Air Force One. "The president will use the opportunity to honor the 13 men and women who died, to talk a little about each of them and to discuss the contribution that they made, and the notion that their memory lasts in the service and the dedication of the armed forces, and by the people that they touched, both in the military and outside."

Much of Obama's efforts today will be out of public view. Shortly after arriving at Fort Hood, he and first lady Michelle Obama plan to meet with families of those killed, at III Corps Headquarters. They'll also meet with some of the wounded and their families before the memorial service that starts at 1 p.m..

Before returning to Washington, they'll stop by Darnall Army Medical Center, where the suspect had worked, to visit other wounded soldiers.

The White House is fending off mounting criticism that U.S. authorities ignored signs of Hasan's deep objections to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and his growing radicalization – including revelations Monday that he contacted a radical imam in Yemen by email in the past year, and had defended the use of suicide bombings to Army medical colleagues.

"This is an ongoing joint investigation," Gibbs said, "and the president has asked every agency involved, and everybody that would have had some purview over this, to investigate why this happened, how this happened, and to ensure that they could tell him that it won't happen again .... The president has asked that there be that accounting, and when we have it, we'll let it be known."

It was unclear whether Obama will use his remarks today to address fears about the loyalties of Muslims in the U.S. military, and related concerns that the massacre will provoke an unfair backlash.

"There are people... of all faiths and all ethnicities serving with distinction and valor in our armed services today. The investigation is ongoing to figure out what would motivate an individual to carry out the type of act this major carried out," Gibbs said.

For the entire article:

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/111009dntexobama.3c450e8.html

"Jungle angel" was Barack Obama’s mother

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:55:16 EST

11/8/09 Sunday Times

Christine Finn Kajar, Java Tony Allen-Mills New York

In a remote corner of rural Java, a blacksmith and his family were astounded last week to learn that the American woman who helped save them from poverty 26 years ago was Ann Dunham, an anthropologist better known as the late mother of the US president.

Dunham is still remembered in the central Javan hamlet of Kajar as a generous benefactor whose gifts of money, food and schoolbooks helped numerous villagers. Yet none of them had realised that the woman who paid several visits to research rural crafts in the 1980s had a son who was to become America’s 44th president.

Told by The Sunday Times that Dunham was Barack Obama’s mother, Darmo Sujak, a 67-year-old blacksmith, said he was “shocked” to discover the full identity of the woman who had changed his life.

Sujak recalled how Dunham arrived at his home in 1983 in a white Jeep with more than 100lb of rice, sweets, pens and school books.

He said Dunham, who died of cancer in Hawaii in 1995 at the age of 52, had given him four donations worth the equivalent of $1,000. The money enabled him to build his house, expand his business and pay for his children’s education.

Other villagers recognised Dunham, and themselves, from photographs that are included with parts of her graduate thesis in a book that will be published next month with a foreword by Maya Soetoro-Ng, Dunham’s daughter by her second marriage and Obama’s half-sister.

Soetoro-Ng said last week she was happy to learn that her mother was still remembered in the Javan villages where she did most of her research while Barack, then a teenager, remained in Hawaii with his grandparents.

“She had a real affection for those people and that place,” Soetoro-Ng told The Sunday Times. “She helped a lot of people through her work and it was very much like her to help them on a more personal level.”

Dunham’s visits to Indonesia would later cause political controversy over bogus claims that Obama had been raised as a Muslim and had been born overseas, making him ineligible to be president.

It was partly to set the record straight about their mother’s Indonesian work that Soetoro-Ng found a publisher for Surviving Against the Odds: Village Industry in Indonesia, an academic study based on her mother’s 1,000-page graduate thesis. Gazing at Dunham’s portrait on the cover, Sujak said he felt his benefactor was still with him in spirit. “It means that she still loves me; after 25 years she is still looking out for me,” he said.

Sujak recalled how he had applied for a grant after seeing a notice posted by Dunham. He recalled that he enclosed a photograph of his then seven-year-old daughter, Sutini, with his application. The Kansas-born American was travelling at the time with her own daughter, Maya, whose Indonesian father married Dunham two years after her 1964 divorce from Obama’s Kenyan father.

Kay Ikranagara, a friend of Dunham’s at the Academy of Educational Development in Jakarta, said the gifts were in keeping with the American woman’s nature.

“She was so warm-hearted. It is nice that someone she helped has been traced in this way. I hope there will be more.”

In all, Dunham gave the Sujak family 1m rupiah, then equivalent to twice the annual salary of a factory worker. Recognised in Java as a pioneer of microfinance, Dunham was campaigning to extend small loans to rural industries.

Some of the cash may have come from one of the international development agencies for which she worked as a consultant, but Dunham added her own gifts, including a fondly remembered present of three watches.

Sutini, Sujak’s daughter, is now 32 and still lives in the village. Shown Dunham’s photograph, she vividly remembered the childhood visit from a smiling, dark-haired woman.

Another villager recognised herself as a child, photographed in her late father’s shop. The 42-year-old woman, who said her name was Mintarsih, rushed to show the picture to family and friends. Her mother, Bu Sastro, was visibly moved to see her late husband’s portrait in the book. He had been one of Dunham’s main research subjects.

Dunham first visited Indonesia in the 1960s with her second husband, Lolo Soetoro. Obama lived with them in Jakarta for four years from 1967-71. When the couple split up in 1972, Dunham moved to Hawaii before returning to her Indonesian research in 1977. Barack was 16 at the time, and decided to stay with his grandparents in Honolulu.

While undertaking her fieldwork Dunham stayed at the home of Bu Maggie Norobangun, who last week recalled how the American visitor had loved to dress in vividly coloured traditional batik skirts. “She was anxious to raise the position and role of women, especially in villages . . . teaching young mothers how to make soup, showing an interest in them,” she said.

Dunham’s simple room, today bearing cracks from an earthquake in 2006, overlooks fruit trees and a terrace, where she would talk about her work with her hosts, and other visiting students. She described the village as “a wonderful and mysterious place”.

Dunham’s thesis reflects her passionate interest in Indonesian rural life. She describes how in 1978 Pak Sastro, a technology enthusiast, bought the village’s first television — battery-run as there was no electricity.

He and his wife settled down to watch it when, Dunham recalls, “hundreds of visitors crowded uninvited into their house to watch this strange new device”.

“Finally, in exasperation, Pak Sastro was forced to place the set in the window, facing the yard, and sat outside with his wife, on two chairs closest to the set, the villagers clamouring to view it behind them.”

Soetoro-Ng often accompanied her mother on her research trips. She writes in the book’s foreword: “Many hours of my childhood were spent in the homes of blacksmiths or by their furnaces . . . on these trips the greetings that the village women exchanged with Mom conveyed an intimacy that made it clear they had fully taken each other’s measure ... she was welcomed and trusted by all.”

In his memoir, Dreams From My Father, Obama displayed no trace of anger or regret that his mother had left him in Hawaii as a teenager.

He described her as “the kindest, most generous spirit I have ever known”.

HCR Bill questions posted on the O-Blog

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:10:04 EST

HealthCare Bill questions were posted by O-blogger Dave on the O-blog:

What do you guys think the impact of the bill will be from when it passes (in December) to the 2010 elections...in these 8 months or so.

Do you think it will widely be seen as a success before then?

Do you think rates will go down substantially before then?

Will 96% of people be covered by then?

What impact will it have on the economy? Re: What are your guys predictions for the immediate impact of the bill?

This was my reply: In Hawaii where there already is mandatory health care coverage for those who work 20 hours. To work around that many companies only hire workers for 20 hours. That is why the majority of people in Hawaii work multiple jobs (sometimes three) to make ends meet.

In many countries there is "social health care coverage" because everyone's taxes are higher to cover the expense.

America is one of the richest countries with citizen taxes that are relatively low and an astonishingly number of people that are at the poverty level, homeless, hungry and not covered health care wise.

ABC Jake Tapper interviews POTUS

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:59:36 EST

Obama: 'This is a Health Care Bill, Not an Abortion Bill'

President Says Still More Work to be Done on Legislation Passed by House

11/9/09 By JAKE TAPPER, KAREN TRAVERS, SUNLEN MILLER and DEVIN DWYER - ABC

President Obama said today that Congress needs to change abortion-related language in the health care bill passed by the House of Representatives this weekend.

"I laid out a very simple principle, which is this is a health care bill, not an abortion bill," Obama said. "And we're not looking to change what is the principle that has been in place for a very long time, which is federal dollars are not used to subsidize abortions.

Saying the bill cannot change the status quo regarding the ban on federally funding abortions, the President said "there are strong feelings on both sides" about an amendment passed on Saturday and added to the legislation, "and what that tells me is that there needs to be some more work before we get to the point where we're not changing the status quo."

After a contentious debate, the House passed a health care bill on Saturday that includes a provision banning abortion from being covered in the public insurance option contained in the bill. The bill also prevents women receiving insurance subsidies from purchasing private plans that cover abortion. Liberals in the House Democratic caucus were opposed to these provisions but voted for the overall bill.

In an exclusive television interview in the Map Room of the White House, Obama told ABC News' Jake Tapper that he was confident that the final legislation will ensure that "neither side feels that it's being betrayed."

"I want to make sure that the provision that emerges meets that test -- that we are not in some way sneaking in funding for abortions, but, on the other hand, that we're not restricting women's insurance choices," he said.

Watch more of President Obama's interview with Jake Tapper tonight on World News and Nightline and tomorrow on Good Morning America.

The President was also asked about concerns that the Medicare cuts he proposes to help pay for health care reform would be undone by Congress subsequently, as is often the case with deficit and cost cutting measures.

"Are you willing to pledge that whatever cuts in Medicare are being made to fund health insurance, one third of it, that you will veto anything that tries to undo that?" Tapper asked.

" Yes," the President said. "I actually have said that is is important for us to make sure this thing is deficit neutral, without tricks."

Obama told ABC News there is still more work to be done before a final health care bill reaches his desk for a signature.

"I think everybody understands that there's going to be work to be done on the Senate side," he said. "It's not going to match up perfectly with the House side."

WORLD FREEDOM DAY, 2009

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:31:32 EST

THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
November 9, 2009

WORLD FREEDOM DAY, 2009

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION

Twenty years ago today, the Wall came down in Berlin and both a country and a continent came together. After thousands of East Berliners flooded through checkpoints into West Berlin, border restrictions dissolved across Eastern Bloc countries. The Iron Curtain that divided Europe for decades finally fell, ushering in a new era of freedom and cooperation. On this anniversary, we are reminded that no challenge is too great for a world united in common purpose. After the Berlin Wall fell, oppressive regimes across the globe gave way. From Kiev to Cape Town, prison camps closed and democracy's doors were unlocked for millions who had known only tyranny. Markets opened too, spreading information and technology that empowered once-insolvent nations to achieve prosperity.

Twenty years later, our world is more interconnected than at any time in human history, giving rise to new opportunities for shared progress. Today, the barriers that challenge our world are not walls of cement and iron, but ones of fear, irresponsibility, and indifference. History reminds us that such walls can be torn down, but where they still exist we must work with all nations to strengthen civil societies, support democratic institutions and the rule of law, and promote free and fair electoral processes. Upholding these principles into the 21st century will require America's enduring commitment and steady leadership. From our first days as a Nation, Americans have felt a sense of urgency and determination to promote liberty and release the potential within each individual to contribute to the common good. On World Freedom Day, we celebrate the thriving democracies of Central and Eastern Europe, and we honor their citizens' right to choose their own destinies and contribute to their nations' future success.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 9, 2009, as World Freedom Day. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this day in fellowship with other nations and people of the world with appropriate ceremonies and activities, reaffirming our dedication to freedom and democracy. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this ninth day of November, in the year of our Lord two thousand nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fourth.

BARACK OBAMA

I still have hopes for bipartisan health care reform

The Bard of Wilmette — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:21:11 EST

One of the points made by President Obama in his speech to the joint session of Congress to advocate health care reform was that he would be receptive to good and constructive ideas from any source, including Republicans who oppose nearly everything he does. It was a fine speech, and it succeeded in raising the prospects of enacting some kind of significant health care reform. If he really meant what he said about considering good ideas from the political opposition, he should make that more clear.

Without a doubt, health care reform is a very difficult challenge. As the saying goes, if it was easy, it would have been done long ago. Obama’s allies in Congress (the Democrats) have major differences among themselves, regarding the merits of different aspects of reform. The Republicans are almost 100% united in opposition, both for sincere ideological reasons and for pure political motives. Obama would like to have a bipartisan bill, but (with very few possible exceptions) congressional Republicans will refuse to back any bill, even if it contains several provisions to their liking. By temperament and political background, Obama has always tried to build a consensus, but neither party in Congress is in the mood. What is a president to do?

In apparent opposition to all conventional wisdom, I still believe that the best solution – both for policy and politics – would be a moderate health care reform bill that uses some of the better ideas from both parties. For the reforms to work, they will have to expand access and reduce overall health care costs, regardless of how payment of those costs is distributed. Reforms that focus on one of these issues while ignoring the other will ultimately fail.

With my usual disclaimer about not being an expert on this or any other subject, the best health care reform at this time would have the following characteristics:

1) No legal resident of the U.S. can have his/her coverage denied or revoked due to personal health issues. [The issue regarding illegal residents is trickier. My inclination is to believe that illegal residents should be included, but I would not insist on it as a condition to support an otherwise good bill.]

2) All persons eligible for coverage must be covered. There can be no “opt out” for individuals or families. Tax credits or similar assistance should be available for those who are too poor to afford coverage, but they have to get the coverage. If insurance companies must accept all applicants and all preexisting conditions, then it makes no sense to allow healthy Americans to stay out of the system before the need for insurance becomes obvious.

3) The tax favored treatment for employer-sponsored insurance should be ended, or at least sharply reduced. People who cannot get health insurance through work should not be disadvantaged the way they are now.

4) Individuals and small groups should be able to join large risk pools, in order to remove cost distortions due to underwriting.

5) Sensible tort reform is necessary. This includes caps on non-economic damages and an effective distinction between ordinary and gross negligence. In return for setting limits, the medical profession must do a better job of policing its members. The current practical necessities of defensive medicine and huge malpractice premiums greatly add to overall health care costs, while doing very little for patient well being.

6) End the interstate prohibition on selling medical insurance. Most states need more effective competition among its potential health insurers. Allowing the sale of insurance across state lines would be a big help.

7) Emphasis on prevention, as opposed to treatment and cure, needs to be a component of health care reform. There needs to be financial incentives for people to participate in wellness programs and annual physical exams.

8) For all the talk about “death panels,” the fact is that a large chunk of health care costs take place in the last six months of the patient’s life. I am not about write off somebody for being terminally ill, but there needs to be more honest discussion about the costs associated with extraordinary measures to keep somebody breathing for a few extra months, or weeks, or days. I don’t know what the appropriate answer is, but this is a big element of the national health care bill, and the issue must be faced with more honesty than it has had so far.

9) The public option is not as great an idea as its advocates suggest. This is especially true if there is an “opt out” provision for each individual state. It would likely have the effect of denying coverage for many vulnerable Americans. It will do nothing to contain actual costs, and the notion that it will “save” money by paying doctors at Medicare (or Medicaid) rates makes no sense. Doctors and hospitals can presently treat Medicare as a loss leader item, pushing up the costs to everybody else. They cannot do that if there is no everybody else. The public option either works like Medicare, providing a short term illusion of cost saving, or it works like a private insurance company, with no saving. The “trigger” provision suggested by Olympia Snowe and some other senators, where the public option would be created something like five years in the future if demonstrated to necessary by conditions at that time, might make sense.

Anyway, the status quo cannot continue indefinitely. We need to have some sensible health care reform, but we need to get something that can pass both the House and Senate. Passing a feel good measure that passes only one house of Congress is useless. I believe that a health care reform bill with the characteristics outlined above would be good public policy, and can pass Congress if President Obama makes clear that this is something he supports. It may seem to be too much of half-hearted reform for the liking of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, but even a half-hearted reform now leaves open further reforms in the near future, if those are believed to be needed. The reverse is not true. Failure to pass something now will almost guarantee a very long delay in passing any reform. It will also seriously weaken Obama’s presidency. I do not want that to happen.

Dr. Jill Biden: A Mother's Gratitude on Veterans Day

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:18:11 EST

11/15/09 Jesse Lee - WhiteHouse.gov

(Dr. Biden and Vice President Biden greet soldiers from the Delaware Army National Guard 261st Signal Brigade at their homecoming in September. Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)

Like military moms across the country, Dr. Jill Biden looked for small ways to send the comforts of home to son Beau during his deployment: she and Vice President Biden sent him a Christmas stocking stuffed with candy and playing cards; she baked him his favorite brownies for his birthday; she helped him keep up with children Natalie and Hunter by mailing artwork and photos of soccer games. This Veterans Day, with Beau safely home after almost a year in Iraq, Dr. Biden expresses her gratitude for the sacrifices of all military families in an essay published today in USA WEEKEND Magazine, and shares how she plans to honor the men and women who risk their lives for our country:

It helps that families such as ours realize we're never alone, as I've seen this year how powerful the support of the community can be: A local restaurant provides pizzas at a welcome-home event; a minor-league baseball team, the Wilmington Blue Rocks, dedicates a game night in support of our troops; one of our schools adopts a military unit. Then, there's an organization I've worked with in the past few years called Delaware Boots on the Ground. It started as a group of military moms and spouses who came together to support our Delaware National Guard members and their families. "Boots" now performs simple acts of service for deployed soldiers and their families, like supporting summer camps for children who have a deployed parent. There are just so many ways that each American can lend a hand and make a difference.

Beau came home safely Sept. 25, after almost a year in Iraq. My family feels so blessed.

Joe and I plan to visit Arlington National Cemetery this Veterans Day and spend time with veterans and soldiers to show our thanks. On Veterans Day and every day, it's our duty to show appreciation for their service and remember that each of us has the ability to make a difference in the life of a service member. Even though Beau's deployment is complete, I still consider myself a member of the military family. I always will.

What a year

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:09:36 EST

One year ago today I was hoping that Barack Obama would be our next POTUS.

I remembered how hard South County 4 Obama worked on voter registration, phonebanking, postcard writing, drove caravans to canvass in near by swing states. I also was disheartened that everyone's Obama yard signs kept getting stolen and how on a voter reg at a local food festival Linda had to put up with people bad mouthing Obama and Hispanics (Linda is of Hispanic heritage but does not really look it)

I would walk my dog past an elementary school wearing an Obama T-shirt and the kids would shout "Obama! Obama!" and I would give one child the round Obama stickers and say to share them with the others!

I remember the mid-campaign Obama party that we had at the Pattersons. There was food, O-buttons, O-bumper stickers, an Obama cut-out, a McCain/Palin pinata and "Pin Your HOPES on the Donkey". Everyone wrote their HOPE that the Obama administration would bring..click for photos.

I remember that my husband and I were so exhausted from the back to back marathon voter registration drives at our near by college!!

After the election I was at the Safeway checkout and the cashier told me "Your not wearing an Obama shirt...you always wear and Obama shirt!" LOL! :D

I remember the big Inauguration Party at the hotel lobby, milling with all the Obama supporters and watching the Inauguration balls on the TV screens.

For those cynics....I wish people would really THINK about how close we were to falling farther down into the abyss of the economic downturn but that a lot of Obama's cool-headedness helped to slow down the down turn. Also how Obama has improved foreign relations. Also that POTUS can not get things changed alone and many times other members of Congress can keep change from happening.

What would things be like if McCain & Palin would have won?...I think that things would have been worse because they seem clueless and antagonistic toward anyone or any country who do not share the same ideals. They NEVER would have extended the hand of peace to the other countries.

A year later and I am still glad that I worked that hard and that we have a President Obama.

When public officials abuse their trust

The Bard of Wilmette — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:26:35 EST

This week, the U.S. Supreme Court is to hear a case involving alleged misconduct by prosecutors in Iowa in a case dating back to 1977. An editorial today in the Washington Post titled The right not to be framed provides useful background on the case. Two black men convicted of murdering a retired white police officer are suing the prosecutors for fabricating evidence to frame the two men, who each spent 25 years in prison for the crime. The convictions were overturned by the Iowa Supreme Court, which concluded that the star witness was a “liar and a perjurer.” One of the two defendants was cleared. The other one initially sought a new trial, but eventually agreed to a conviction, with the sentence limited to time served.

It appears that the prosecutors are not seriously disputing the allegations of their own misconduct, because they are emphasizing not their innocence, but rather that “there is no freestanding constitutional right not to be framed.” According to the allegations, the prosecutors knowingly coaxed supposed witnesses to fabricate testimony against the suspects. The justification for claiming immunity to lawsuits based on malicious prosecutorial misconduct is based on the idea that if you let this suit go forward, then you would have to allow it for every acquitted defendant and every defendant whose case was subject to minor mistakes by the prosecution. That is ridiculous, and the U.S. Supreme Court should say so.

Prosecutors are an important part of protecting the public from the bad guys, and they should be immune from lawsuits based on innocent errors and “gray area” incidents of possible wrongdoing. Sometimes, the wrongdoing is apparently clear in hindsight, but seemed reasonable at the time it happened. Personally, I am not sympathetic to lawsuits based on alleged misdeeds of this kind. For a lawsuit based on prosecutorial misconduct to have legal standing, the alleged misconduct must far exceed the usual kinds of activity that might be of dubious legality. For the lawsuit to be successful, there should be a high burden of proof by the plaintiff. However, it is outrageous to suggest that such a lawsuit should never have legal standing, no matter how badly the public official abused his authority.

Readers of my past OFA postings might recall that I was opposed to bringing criminal charges against President Bush and/or Vice-President Cheney, as some of my fellow bloggers were inclined to do. As deplorable as some of their (Bush and Cheney) actions were, they can at least make the credible argument that they acted with the motive of protecting the American people from terrorists. I believe that some of their methods were illegal, and they deserve a very harsh judgment by future historians, but I have never thought that criminal charges against them would be appropriate. I mention this now, in order to make clear that I am not a big advocate for legal punishment of government officials for abusing their office. This appears to be one case where it is appropriate.

Here is a link to the Post editorial:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/01/AR2009110101950.html?wpisrc=newsletter

A major newspaper's pundit contest

The Bard of Wilmette — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:44:59 EST

Some weeks ago, The Washington Post announced an op-ed writing contest, where non-professional writers were invited to submit an essay of 400 words or less. The essays would be judged by the clarity of writing, and content with an interesting message, but not on whether or not the editors agreed with the content. There were thousands of submissions, including one from yours truly. Out of these thousands, only ten of these amateur writers would advance to the second round, and the process would gradually whittle down to a single winner, who would get the honor of contributing a regular column for something like ten weeks. The winner would receive a fairly modest fee for his/her columns, but the main prize would be the prestige, not the money.

My essay was not one of the ten that made it to the second round, and of course, I was well aware that my odds were very remote. Anyway, now that I am officially out of the running, I would like to share my essay with my fellow OFA bloggers:

With multiple international crises and a serious economic recession to address, along with an ongoing effort to accomplish major reforms in healthcare, other issues have understandably been set aside for now. It can wait awhile, but I hope that some time before the end of Barack Obama’s presidency, there will be a serious examination of the various laws enacted, and enforcement methods used, in the name of “getting tough on crime.” We have the infamous war on drugs, which generally criminalizes the casual possession and use of various drugs, some of which are relatively harmless. We have the “three strikes” laws in many states, which in some circumstances impose long prison terms for minor offenses. Capital punishment is as popular as ever. Politicians frequently try to outdo each other in the contest to appear tougher on crime, because that perception is always a big advantage in elections. Conversely, an American politician who dares to suggest that these measures are ineffective in combating crime have as much chance of getting elected as would a candidate for the Iranian parliament who publicly doubts the existence of God.

I have no problem with being tough on crime, but I believe that many of the actions done with that supposed objective are ineffective at best, and in some cases counterproductive. Smarter and wiser people than yours truly may disagree, but let’s at least challenge some of the cherished assumptions.

Problems with the war on drugs include wasted resources (police, courts, jail), drug classifications which defy common sense (tobacco cigarettes are legal, marijuana is not), enrichment of organized crime (because lawful merchants cannot supply the people with what they apparently want), and the lost opportunity for excise tax revenue.

The three strikes laws remove the ability of a trial judge to use common sense in sentencing a convicted defendant. By imposing a mandatory twenty year sentence (for example) when a much shorter sentence is appropriate under the circumstances, the prisons become overcrowded with inmates who should not be there.

The usual justifications for capital punishment are false. They do not generally deter crime or save the taxpayers money, nor can we be sure that an innocent person is never executed. Execution undeniably does serve one purpose, which is to satisfy our collective thirst for revenge for an especially gruesome crime.

Let’s have some open an honest debate on these issues.

Now, back to the present day (11/2/09). I wrote the above words about a month ago. The Post editors had to sift through thousands of submitted essays – most of them undoubtedly well written – and it cannot have been easy to select the ten best. For the second round, they asked the would-be pundits to write a 750 word essay, on a different subject matter from the one they used in the first round. Two examples are provided in today’s on-line edition of the post:

http://views.washingtonpost.com/pundits/contestants/mara.gay/2009/11/mom_in_chief.html

http://views.washingtonpost.com/pundits/contestants/darryl.jackson/2009/11/sarah_palins_second_act.html

In my own (obviously biased) opinion, their writings are no better than mine, and Mr. Jackson’s is definitely worse.

Keeping Barack Obama human

The Bard of Wilmette — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:17:48 EDT

The OFA blog today contains a post from somebody, apparently with the moniker “Worship,” with an interesting message:

Our first announcement to all Obama supporters We want to move past being known as an Obama supporter, and move into the realm of an Obama Worshiper. President Obama is the greatest world leader the world has ever seen, and we should worship the ground he walks on out of respect for him and his accomplishments.

While I respect the sincerity of people whose admiration for President Obama seems to extend to the level of elevating the president into a deity, I cannot share the attitude. I want to be clear about my own attitude. I do admire Barack Obama as a person. He is the first presidential candidate to get any direct financial support from me. His campaign was also the first, since I was an idealistic high school student forty years ago, where I volunteered my time. I shared in the excitement of his 2008 election victory. This was not merely a victorious candidate who got my vote, but also (for the first time in my life) my enthusiastic support.

To be realistic, however, it is far too early to be sure that Obama will be a great president, let alone the greatest world leader the world has ever seen. For one thing, a great man (or woman) who happens to be the president is very different from being a great president. The qualities are not the same.

President Obama has, in my opinion, qualities that potentially can make him a great president. He is highly intelligent, a well read student of history, and trained to understand and appreciate competing viewpoints regarding a particular issue or problem. He is secure enough about himself that he does not take political attacks personally. He understands, maybe to a greater degree than nearly any of his predecessors (on a level with the senior President Bush), the role of diplomacy in international relations. While not historically a good predictor of presidential performance, Barack Obama is also (by all available evidence) an excellent family man who lives by an admirable personal moral code. Maybe that is not very important, but if nothing else, the absence of any scandal in his life at least precludes his being a target of personal blackmail. It also could give him some additional credibility when he is trying to push some moral cause.

Great presidents have to be excellent politicians. This means sometimes compromising with ideals in order to achieve something important. It sometimes involves choosing the least bad of several unappealing alternatives (the war in Afghanistan comes to mind). It involves making mistakes. Most historians have judged (correctly, in my view) Franklin Roosevelt as one of our greatest presidents. Despite that, however, there is absolutely no justification for FDR rounding up large numbers of Japanese-Americans and putting them in concentration camps. That is just one example. Jimmy Carter had, and still has, many of the same admirable personal qualities as we see in Barack Obama. Unfortunately, Mr. Carter was not a successful president.

If Obama is going to be a great president, the biggest pitfall he has to avoid is the tendency for presidents to be isolated from conflicting policy arguments. Many of our presidents would not tolerate even private dissent. They surrounded themselves with advisors who only told them what they wanted to hear, and anybody who dared to differ with the president’s inclinations would soon be out of a job. Other presidents became that way after starting out differently. In Obama’s Harvard Law training, he learned the value of competing arguments as a means of ultimately arriving at a good solution to a problem. This does not mean that he will get it right every time, but at least he should be well aware of the legitimate reasons in support of an alternative answer. This is a very good quality for Obama to have, but the surest way for him to lose it would be if he is surrounded by people who worship the ground he walks on. Obama is not right all the time, and when we believe he is wrong, we should say so. To cite one small example, he was wrong to slap a punitive tariff on tires from China. In my own opinion, he has not handled the health care reform efforts in Congress as well as he could, although events in the coming several weeks will make it clearer than it is now whether or not my criticism on this issue is premature.

Healthy Kids Fair

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 17:19:54 EDT

10/22/09 http://obamafoodorama.blogspot.com/

Excerpts from the Healthy Kids Fair articles:

The White House held a Healthy Kids Fair, where First Lady Michelle Obama kicked off her shoes and hula hooped, Double Dutch jump roped, and sprinted through an obstacle course on the South Lawn, accompanied by dozens of visiting school children. Adding to the party atmosphere: The White House Chefs, accompanied by high-profile guest chefs, were demonstrating recipes in a series of outdoor kitchen stations.

But the Healthy Kids Fair couldn’t have been more serious, because it's part of an ongoing Obama campaign to encourage kids, parents and families to make changes in their behavior that will improve overall health. And it was a way of continuing the national conversation about children's health and nutrition issues that Mrs. Obama started last Spring, when she first planted the White House Kitchen Garden. Sec. Vilsack has been having similar child health conversations over the past six months too, in many of his own speeches, whether he's talking to produce growers or appearing at Rural Tour events. In her remarks at the Healthy Kids Fair, Mrs. Obama repeated the grave statistics that have become part of her food policy speeches, noting that one in three American children are overweight or obese, and that for the first time ever, medical experts are predicting that if this doesn’t change, the current generation of children will have a shorter life span than their parents, due to diet-related disease. And then Mrs. Obama pointed out something she hasn’t previously mentioned in any of her speeches: Children spend a third of their time in schools, and many schools are undermining parents’ best efforts to keep their kids healthy.

“…We don't have control over what you eat when you're at school,” Mrs. Obama told the children seated on the grass in front of her. And then she addressed the parents. “So even when we're-- when we're working hard to give our kids healthy food at home, if they go to school and eat a lunch that's loaded with calories and fat, then all the efforts that we try to instill at home, it gets knocked off a little bit."

Mrs. Obama pointed out more parental undermining, courtesy of what has become standard policy in many US schools:

“When I grew up -- and I went to public schools in my neighborhood--I don't care what you did; you had recess and you had gym on a very regular basis,” Mrs. Obama said. “So even though we're encouraging our kids to exercise, if they can't go to school and…get the same kind of exercise opportunities, then it makes our jobs as parents harder.”

No PE/recess and bad school foods might not be solely responsible for the rising rates of child obesity, but it sure isn’t helping. At the Healthy Kids Fair, Mrs. Obama and Sec. Vilsack announced one of their weapons of choice to combat this: USDA’s Healthier US Schools Challenge. The program is currently in about 635 elementary schools nationwide, which have pledged to eliminate junk foods from their campuses, make healthy foods available, include nutrition education in the curriculum, and re-introduce physical activity, either by adding recess or phys ed classes. In partnership, Mrs. Obama and USDA are seeking to dramatically expand the program, and bring it up into Middle and High schools, to include older populations of students. The First Lady promised to visit some schools that are successful in implementing the program.

And here’s another angle that went largely unreported from the Healthy Kids Fair: The White House Chefs and the guest chefs weren’t just cooking random "fun" recipes; they were specifically cooking nutritious, low fat, healthy dishes with ingredients that are already available to schools through USDA’s federal nutrition program. Mrs. Obama pointed this out in her remarks:

“The chefs and nutritionists here today are going to show us how we can use the food that the USDA provides to schools as a way to prepare really tasty, healthy foods," Mrs. Obama said. "They’re going to take that food that you get in the schools and do some special stuff to show that with the food that we have, we can probably do even better than we're doing.”

Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses created the Baked Apple recipe. Yosses explained the ideology behind the Baked Apples. "We wanted simplicity and convenience, and to use ingredients that most people have in the house anyway," Yosses said. "And we wanted ease of preparation so that kids can do it, too."

"Kids can definitely make this recipe," Morrison added, possibly relieved to be on a subject other than what she's managed to set on fire in the White House kitchen. "A few kids just told me that their moms make things like this at home." She added that the apples in the demo were Honey Crisps, a local apple that's grown widely in Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania is considered "local" to DC, for all you strict locavore readers).

"You can also use a very sour apple, for a different flavor," Morrison said. "Bill picked the Honey Crisps--good choice, they held up very well--kept their shape."

"Any kind of dried fruit works in the recipe," Yosses added. "It doesn't have to be raisins. Apricots or blueberries are good, for something different."

Both Yosses and Morrison said they appreciate all the focus on children's nutrition and healthy cooking that's been going on in the Obama White House kitchen.

"It's just great," Yosses said. "As Mrs. Obama pointed out, so many of the health problems of today can be related to diet, so we're so happy to be able to help people eat better." Mrs. Bush, who selected Yosses to be her Executive Pastry Chef, also hosted children in her kitchen. But these events were not overly publicized, because Mrs. Bush didn't have a high-profile food agenda, like Mrs. Obama.

**************

White House Baked Sliced Apples

6 apples (cored and sliced)

1/2 c. rolled oats

1/2 oz. butter

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 c. raisins or other dried fruit

1/4 c. apple juice

1/4 c. maple syrup, brown sugar or honey

1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients. Place in buttered baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes (or until golden brown crust appears). You may also add a cup of your favorite nuts for added protein and flavor. Serves six.

Congress extends crime protections to gays

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:16:37 EDT

10/22/09 Jim Abrams - AP

WASHINGTON – Physical attacks on people based on their sexual orientation will join the list of federal hate crimes in a major expansion of the civil rights-era law Congress approved Thursday and sent to President Barack Obama. The defense bill is H.R. 2647.

A priority of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., that had been on the congressional agenda for a decade, the measure expands current law to include crimes based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. The measure is named for Matthew Shepard, the gay Wyoming college student murdered 11 years ago.

To assure its passage after years of frustrated efforts, Democratic supporters attached the measure to a must-pass $680 billion defense policy bill the Senate approved 68-29. The House passed the defense bill earlier this month.

Many Republicans, normally staunch supporters of defense bills, voted against the bill because of the hate crimes provision. All the no votes were Republicans except for Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., who supported the hate crimes provision but opposes what he says is the open-ended military commitment in Afghanistan.

"The inclusion of the controversial language of the hate crimes legislation, which is unrelated to our national defense, is deeply troubling," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala.

Hate crimes law enacted after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., in 1968 centered on crimes based on race, color, religion or national origin.

The expansion has long been sought by civil rights and gay rights groups. Conservatives have opposed it, arguing that it creates a special class of victims. They also have been concerned that it could silence clergymen or others opposed to homosexuality on religious or philosophical grounds.

Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay rights group, hailed the bill as "our nation's first major piece of civil rights legislation for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Too many in our community have been devastated by hate violence."

Some 45 states have hate crimes statutes, and the bill would not change current practices where hate crimes are generally investigated and prosecuted by state and local officials.

But it does broaden the narrow range of actions — such as attending school or voting — that can trigger federal involvement and allows the federal government to step in if the Justice Department certifies that a state is unwilling or unable to follow through on an alleged hate crime.

The measure also provides federal grants to help state and local governments prosecute hate crimes and funds programs to combat hate crimes committed by juveniles.

"As we learned in the civil rights era, sometimes communities need assistance and resources from the federal government when they have to confront the most emotional and dangerous kinds of crimes," said Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo.

The bill also creates a federal crime to penalize attacks against U.S. service members on account of their service.

Attorney General Eric Holder said nearly 80,000 hate crime incidents have been reported to the FBI since he first testified before Congress in support of a hate crimes bill 11 years ago. "It has been one of my highest personal priorities to ensure that this legislation finally becomes law," he said.

The FBI says more than half of reported hate crimes are motivated by racial bias. Next most frequent are crimes based on religious bias, at around 18 percent, and sexual orientation, at 16 percent.

At the urging of Republicans the bill was changed to strengthen free speech protections to assure that a religious leader or any other person cannot be prosecuted on the basis of his or her speech, beliefs or association.

"Nothing in this legislation diminishes an American's freedom of religion, freedom of speech or press or the freedom to assemble," said Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md. "Let me be clear. The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act targets acts, not speech."

That didn't convince Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., who said the bill was a "dangerous step" toward thought crimes. He asked whether the bill would "serve as a warning to people not to speak out too loudly about their religious views."

Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Council, said the measure was "part of a radical social agenda that could ultimately silence Christians and use the force of government to marginalize anyone whose faith is at odds with homosexuality."

*********

Thank you God! It is about time!

Where Congress stands on the public option

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:58:41 EDT

Want to know where Congress stands on the public option?

Senator responses to each specific question are posted at

http://standwithdrdean.com/where_congress_stands

In addition to your emails, Democracy for America members and our partners have made calls to Congress and reported back the results to Stand With Dr. Dean.

Interesting allies regarding the war on drugs

The Bard of Wilmette — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:08:48 EDT

Syndicated columnist Kathleen Parker has an excellent op-ed in today’s (10/21/09) Washington Post. Ms. Parker is generally conservative, but not right wing, and this column concerns the Obama administration’s decision that the federal government will not interfere with states which permit the use of medical marijuana. I think it is an excellent column, because it articulates the case I have been trying to make in some previous blog postings, but in this case with the skill of a professional writer. She praises the administration for making the first step toward sensible drug policy, but she also advocates going further.

The usual arguments in favor of legalizing (or at minimum, decriminalizing) weed note that it is less harmful and addictive than some other currently legal products, that its illegal status means a huge waste of police/court/jail resources, and various other ways that the “war on drugs” is counterproductive, at least regarding marijuana.

In addition to these things, although the foolishness of the “war on drugs” has a long bipartisan history, self-described conservatives should oppose the long standing U.S. policy on ideological grounds. It is a case of government interference with an individual’s choice regarding a recreational activity. Besides that, it is (or at least was, when the supposedly conservative George W. Bush was president) a case of the federal government overruling the states on matters of social policy. True conservatives should be appalled by such arrogance of big government.

Anyway, here is a link to Kathleen Parker’s column:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/20/AR2009102003084.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter&sid=ST2009102003110

Urge YOUR Obama group to make calls NOW !!!!

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:13:58 EDT

Organizing for America is a community organizing project of the Democratic National Committee. Founded after the inauguration of Barack Obama as President of the United States, the group seeks to mobilize supporters who support President Obama's legislative agenda.

OFA supporters made October 20th a historic day. OFA shattered the original goal of 100,000 and got over 300,000 calls to Congress placed or pledged on a single day to let them know that now is the time to deliver on health reform. Phones kept ringing off the hook in congressional offices nationwide.

CBS News described your effort as an "onslaught." Another story cited a common response from a congressional aide, saying their office was deluged by "pretty much non-stop health care calls from OFA."

But it is not a done deal, we've got to keep this momentum going and the phone calls to Congress . The insurance companies have the funding and muscle and will stop at NOTHING to sink reform, and it's up to US to fight back.

This kind of organizing depends on support from people like you. JOIN US to get Health Care Reform; call Congress, call your friends and neighbors to join in to call Congress to deliver Health Care Reform NOW!

http://www.barackobama.com/

Media should always strive for credibilty

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:48:05 EDT

I do not understand how shallow society has become. Why are FOX News, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh popular? Are people so very bored that they are trying to out shock each other? There use to be a cherished things called credibility and dignity.

I believe that journalists like Walter Williams understood the meaning of credibility, dignity and responsibility.

The Journalist's Creed by Walter Williams

    I believe in the profession of Journalism.

    I believe that the public journal is a public trust; that all connected with it are, to the full measure of responsibility, trustees for the public; that acceptance of lesser service than the public service is a betrayal of this trust.

    I believe that clear thinking, clear statement, accuracy and fairness are fundamental to good journalism.

    I believe that a journalist should write only what he holds in his heart to be true. I believe that suppression of the news, for any consideration other than the welfare of society, is indefensible.

    I believe that no one should write as a journalist what he would not say as a gentleman; that bribery by one's own pocket book is as much to be avoided as bribery by the pocketbook of another; that individual responsibility may not be escaped by pleading another's instructions or another's dividends.

    I believe that advertising, news and editorial columns should alike serve the best interests of readers; that a single standard of helpful truth and cleanness should prevail for all; that supreme test of good journalism is the measure of its public service.

    I believe that the journalism which succeeds the best-and best deserves success-fears God and honors man; is stoutly independent; unmoved by pride of opinion or greed of power; constructive, tolerant but never careless, self-controlled, patient, always respectful of its readers but always unafraid, is quickly indignant at injustice; is unswayed by the appeal of the privilege or the clamor of the mob; seeks to give every man a chance, and as far as law, an honest wage and recognition of human brotherhood can make it so, an equal chance; is profoundly patriotic while sincerely promoting international good will and cementing world-comradeship, is a journalism of humanity, of and for today's world.

VPOTUS's trip to Eastern Europe

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:59:16 EDT

10/19/09 Politico:

Vice President Biden's adviser Tony Blinken briefed the press Monday on VPOTUS's trip this week to Eastern Europe (he departs on Tuesday, Nov. 20th for Poland, Romania, and Czech Republic). While he's abroad, Biden will meet with Polish Prime Minister Tusk and President Kaczynski, Romanian President Basescu and Prime Minister Boc and Czech Prime Minister Fischer - as well as the lightning-rod Czech president, Vaclav Klaus.

Said Blinken: "First, and most obviously, the trip comes at a historic marker, the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. So the Vice President is going to mark the moment. But his focus is going to be much more on the future than on the past. In his view, the real validation of 1989 is less in what we took down and more in what we built, and continue to build together -- strong democracies, strong partnerships that deliver for people in all of our countries and beyond."

**************

Wikipedia's information of the fall of Berlin's Wall 20th anniversary celebrations:

On November 9, 2009, Berlin will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall with a "Festival of Freedom", during which over 1,000 foam domino tiles over 8 feet tall will be stacked along the former route of the wall in the city center and toppled.

In the United States, the German Embassy is coordinating a public diplomacy campaign with the motto "Freedom Without Walls" to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. The campaign is focused on promoting awareness of the fall of the Berlin Wall among current college students, and students at over 20 universities will participate in "Freedom Without Walls" events in late 2009.

End the war... on Fox News

The Bard of Wilmette — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:40:59 EDT

I have zero respect for Fox News, and in my own opinion, that organization deserves nothing but contempt. Then again, I can say that, because I am nobody of significance. For President Obama’s top White House aides to say it is quite different. Contrary to the assertions of David Axelrod and Rahm Emanuel, Fox is a news organization. It may be highly slanted and lacking in integrity, but it is still a news organization. It contains legitimate journalists, in addition to the ranting pundits. In my opinion, it is a big mistake for the Obama White House to openly carry on a campaign against Fox News. In doing so, he lowers himself to their level. Maybe I don’t personally think so, but that is the way it looks to a lot of people.

One of the qualities I most admire about Barack Obama is his ability to stay above most of the petty verbal trashing. There can be no serious doubt that at least some of the anti-Obama rhetoric is based on racist motives. By “some,” I do not suggest that most is based on racial fear or anger. A lot of opposition to Obama’s policies is based on pure political differences, and would be no different than if the same policies were being articulated by a white president. On the other hand, I doubt that the ridiculous “birthers” would have gotten much attention if Obama’s ethnic background was similar to mine. Anyway, despite the likelihood that some of the unfair attacks on Obama are based on racism, Obama has never made that accusation against any of his political rivals, nor has he said or implied that the opposition from ordinary voters is based on racism. This is very much to Obama’s credit. Of course, racism still exists, but President Obama is right to never use racism as an excuse for political difficulties or defeats.

So why does he declare war on Fox News? It just makes Obama – or his White House staff, which amounts to the same thing – look as petty as Nixon and Agnew did when they basically accused much of the press of being unpatriotic. Obama should not bring himself down to Nixon’s level. During the campaign, Obama did an outstanding job of remaining good-natured and calmly shaking off the taunts of his political opponents. As a result, he was the one who looked like a statesman, while the others looked like low-class political hacks. President Obama should remember how Senator and presidential candidate Obama handled political attacks.

Here is a link to an essay by somebody who apparently does not agree with me. The writer says the White House is acting appropriately in “fact checking” the various lies by Fox News. That statement may be true, when it comes to false statements of apparent fact, but that does not extend to general disparaging characterizations about Fox News. That goes far beyond fact checking.

http://mediamatters.org/blog/200910090010

Hawaii's health system

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:57:52 EDT

In Hawaii's health system, lessons for lawmakers

10/17/09 By Gardiner Harris- New York Times

HONOLULU — Imee Gallardo, 24, has been scooping ice cream at a Haagen-Dazs shop at Waikiki Beach for five years, and during that time, the shop has done something its counterparts on the mainland rarely do: It has paid for her health care.

Gallardo cannot imagine any other system.

Since 1974, Hawaii has required all employers to provide relatively generous health care benefits to any employee who works 20 hours a week or more. If health care legislation passes in Congress, the rest of the country may barely catch up.

Lawmakers working on a national health care fix have much to learn from the past 35 years in Hawaii, President Barack Obama's native state. Among the most important lessons is that even small steps to change the system can have lasting effects on health. Another is that, once benefits are entrenched, taking them away becomes almost impossible.

But perhaps the most intriguing lesson from Hawaii has to do with costs. This is a state where regular milk sells for $8 a gallon and gasoline costs $3.60 a gallon. Despite this, Hawaii's health insurance premiums are nearly tied with North Dakota for the lowest in the country, and Medicare costs per beneficiary are the nation's lowest.

Hawaiians live longer than people in the rest of the country, recent surveys have shown, and the state's health care system may be one reason. In one example, Hawaii has the nation's highest incidence of breast cancer but the lowest death rate from the disease.

Why is Hawaiian care so efficient? No one really knows. But there may be an answer: With nearly 90 percent of the populace given relatively generous benefits, patients stay healthy and health providers have the money and motivation to innovate.

The Hawaii experience suggests that overhauling health insurance before changing the way care is provided could work, eventually. With more people given access to care, Hawaiian hospital and insurance executives say they have been able to innovate efficiencies. For instance, the state's top three medical providers are adopting electronic medical records — years ahead of most of their mainland counterparts.

****************

Information from Wikipeda regarding Hawaii's health & economy:

Health

Hawaii's health care system insures over 95% of residents. Under the state's plan, all businesses are required to provide employees who work more than twenty hours per week with health care. Heavy regulation of insurance companies helps keep the cost to employers down. In addition, due in part to the system's emphasis on preventive care, Hawaiians require hospital treatment less frequently than their counterparts in the rest of the United States, while total health care expenses (measured as a percentage of state GDP) are substantially lower. Given these achievements, proponents of universal health care elsewhere in the U.S. have sometimes used Hawaii as a model for proposed federal and state health care plans. Critics, however, claim that Hawaii's success is due at least in part to its mild climate and to its status as a chain of islands whose economy is heavily based on tourism: features that make it more difficult for businesses unhappy with paying the plan's premiums to relocate elsewhere.

Economy See also: Hawaii locations by per capita income

....Since statehood was achieved in 1959, tourism has been the largest industry in Hawaii, contributing 24.3% of the Gross State Product (GSP) in 1997. New efforts are underway to diversify the economy. The total gross output for the state in 2003 was US$47 billion; per capita income for Hawaii residents was US$30,441.

Industrial exports from Hawaii include food processing and apparel. ....

Hawaii is known for its relatively high per capita state tax burden. In the years 2002 and 2003, Hawaii residents had the highest state tax per capita at US$2,757 and US$2,838, respectively. This rate can be explained partly by the fact that services such as education, health care and social services are all rendered at the state level, as opposed to the municipal level in all other states.

Millions of tourists contribute to the collection figure by paying the general excise tax and hotel room tax; thus not all the taxes collected come directly from residents. Business leaders, however, have often considered the state's tax burden as being too high, contributing to both higher prices and the perception of an unfriendly business climate. See the list of businesses in Hawaii for more information on commerce in the state.

Until recently, Hawaii was the only state in the U.S. that attempted to control gasoline prices through a Gas Cap Law. The law was enacted during a period when oil profits in Hawaii in relation to the mainland U.S. were under scrutiny, and sought to tie local gasoline prices to those of the mainland. The law took effect in September 2005 amid price fluctuations caused by Hurricane Katrina. The Hawaii state legislature suspended the law in April 2006.

Worldly POTUS talks about Asian American and Pacific Islanders

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 20:35:39 EDT

10/14/09

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT AAPI INITIATIVE EXECUTIVE ORDER SIGNING
AND DIWALI EVENT

East Room 3:46 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Well, good afternoon, everybody. Please be seated. Welcome to the White House. I'm glad you could join us today as I proudly sign this executive order reestablishing the President's Advisory Commission and White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islanders.

Now, when we talk about America's AAPI communities, we're talking about the industry and entrepreneurship of people who've helped build this nation for centuries: from the early days, as laborers on our railroads and farmers tilling our land, to today, as leaders in every sector of American life, from business to science to academia, law and more.

We're talking about the creative energies of musicians like the singers Penn Masala -- we appreciate them -- who performed today. And we're talking about the competitive spirit of athletes like Wat Misaka, who played for the New York Knicks back in 1947 -- the first non-white player in the NBA -- and who served in the U.S. Army during World War II. Mr. Misaka is here as well today and -- where's Mr. Misaka? There he is. Thank you so much. (Applause.)

We're talking about the public service of leaders like Secretaries Gary Locke and Steven Chu and Eric Shinseki and the folks on stage with me today. And we're talking about the courage and the patriotism and sacrifice of heroes like the members of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team who served in World War II, including Terry Shima. Please give him a big round of applause. (Applause.) Mr. Shima is the Executive Director of the Japanese American Veterans Association, and we are grateful that he took the time to be here today.

Some of their families had been interned. Some had been interned themselves. But they still insisted on fighting for America, and went on to become the most highly decorated unit of their size in history.

And one member of the regiment, Private Jake Kirihara, whose parents were held in a camp here in America while he fought overseas, later said: "… even though this wrong was done to us, there was never any question whether America was my country. If America needed me to help, I'll do it."

So this proud tradition of service continues today in Iraq and Afghanistan and around the world, carried on by folks like Tammy Duckworth, my dear friend who's here today. (Applause.) Tammy is a decorated member of our National Guard, a passionate advocate for our wounded warriors, who is now serving as our Assistant Secretary of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs at the Veterans Affairs Department. I'm proud to have her on board and pleased that she could join us today.

And on a personal note, when I talk about America's AAPI communities, I'm talking about my own family: my sister, Maya; my brother-in-law, Konrad; my beautiful nieces, Suhaila and Savita; and the folks I grew up with in Indonesia, and in Honolulu, as part of the Hawai'ian Ohana, or family.

Our AAPI communities have roots that span the globe, but they embody a rich diversity, and a story of striving and success that are uniquely American.

But focusing on all of these achievements doesn't tell the whole story, and that's part of why we're here. It's tempting, given the strengths of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, for us to buy into the myth of the "model minority," and to overlook the very real challenges that certain Asian American and Pacific Islander communities are facing: from health disparities like higher rates of diabetes and Hepatitis B; to educational disparities that still exist in some communities -- high dropout rates, low college enrollment rates; to economic disparities -- higher rates of poverty in some communities, and barriers to employment and workplace advancement in others.

Some Asian American and Pacific Islanders, particularly new Americans and refugees, still face language barriers. Others have been victims of unthinkable hate crimes, particularly in the months after September 11th -- crimes driven by ignorance and prejudice that are an affront to everything that this nation stands for.

And then there are the disparities that we don't even know about because our data collection methods still aren't up to par. Too often, Asian American and Pacific Islanders are all lumped into one category, so we don't have accurate numbers reflecting the challenges of each individual community. Smaller communities in particular can get lost, their needs and concerns buried in a spreadsheet.

And that's why I'm signing this executive order today, reestablishing the advisory commission and White House initiative created by President Clinton 10 years ago. Because when any of our citizens -- (applause) -- when any of our citizens are unable to fulfill their potential due to factors that have nothing to do with their talent, character, or work ethic, then I believe there's a role for our government to play. Not to guarantee anybody's success or to solve everybody's problems, but to ensure that we're living up to our nation's ideals; to ensure that we can each pursue our own version of happiness, and that we continue to be a nation where all things are still possible for all people. That's the impact that our government can have.

It's the impact of a Small Business Administration that offers loans to Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs whose small businesses sustain so many communities around the country. It's the impact of a Department of Health and Human Services that funds research on the diseases that disproportionately affect Asian American and Pacific Islander families. It's the impact of a Justice Department that upholds the Voting Rights Act and its promise of language assistance and equal access to the polls. And it's the impact of evidence-based research and data collection and analysis on AAPI communities -- so that no one is invisible to their government.

All of that is the mission of this initiative and commission -- to work with 23 agencies and departments across our government to improve the health, education, and economic status of AAPI communities. The initiative and commission will be housed in the Department of Education, and they'll be co-chaired by Secretaries Arne Duncan and Secretary Gary Locke, both of whom have devoted their lives to promoting opportunity for all our citizens.

And I think it's fitting that we begin this work in the week leading up to the holiday of Diwali -- the festival of lights -- when members of some of the world's greatest faiths celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

This coming Saturday, Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists, here in America and around the world, will celebrate this holiday by lighting Diyas, or lamps, which symbolize the victory of light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance. And while this is a time of rejoicing, it's also a time for reflection, when we remember those who are less fortunate and renew our commitment to reach out to those in need.

While the significance of the holiday for each faith varies, all of them mark it by gathering with family members to pray and decorate the house and enjoy delicious food and sweet treats. And in that spirit of celebration and contemplation, I am happy to light the White House Diya, and wish you all a Happy Diwali, and a Saal Mubarak. (Applause.)

The White House Diya is lit. (Applause.)

Now I'm going to sign this bill -- sign this order. (The executive order is signed.)

All right. There we go. (Applause.)

POTUS SPEECH AT HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN DINNER

☮ CR ❤ — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 19:20:36 EDT

10/10/09 REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN DINNER

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. Please, you're making me blush. (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER: We love you, Barack!

THE PRESIDENT: I love you back. (Applause.)

To Joe Solmonese, who's doing an outstanding job on behalf of HRC. (Applause.) To my great friend and supporter, Terry Bean, co-founder of HRC. (Applause.) Representative Patrick Kennedy. (Applause.) David Huebner, the Ambassador-designee to New Zealand and Samoa. (Applause.) John Berry, our Director of OPM, who's doing a great job. (Applause.) Nancy Sutley, Chairman of Council on Environmental Quality. (Applause.) Fred Hochberg, Chairman of Export-Import Bank. (Applause.) And my dear friend, Tipper Gore, who's in the house. (Applause.)

Thank you so much, all of you. It is a privilege to be here tonight to open for Lady GaGa. (Applause.) I've made it. (Laughter.) I want to thank the Human Rights Campaign for inviting me to speak and for the work you do every day in pursuit of equality on behalf of the millions of people in this country who work hard in their jobs and care deeply about their families -- and who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. (Applause.)

For nearly 30 years, you've advocated on behalf of those without a voice. That's not easy. For despite the real gains that we've made, there's still laws to change and there's still hearts to open. There are still fellow citizens, perhaps neighbors, even loved ones -- good and decent people -- who hold fast to outworn arguments and old attitudes; who fail to see your families like their families; who would deny you the rights most Americans take for granted. And that's painful and it's heartbreaking. (Applause.) And yet you continue, leading by the force of the arguments you make, and by the power of the example that you set in your own lives -- as parents and friends, as PTA members and church members, as advocates and leaders in your communities. And you're making a difference.

That's the story of the movement for fairness and equality, and not just for those who are gay, but for all those in our history who've been denied the rights and responsibilities of citizenship -- (applause) -- for all who've been told that the full blessings and opportunities of this country were closed to them. It's the story of progress sought by those with little influence or power; by men and women who brought about change through quiet, personal acts of compassion -- and defiance -- wherever and whenever they could.

It's the story of the Stonewall protests, when a group of citizens -- (applause) -- when a group of citizens with few options, and fewer supporters stood up against discrimination and helped to inspire a movement. It's the story of an epidemic that decimated a community -- and the gay men and women who came to support one another and save one another; who continue to fight this scourge; and who have demonstrated before the world that different kinds of families can show the same compassion in a time of need. (Applause.) And it's the story of the Human Rights Campaign and the fights you've fought for nearly 30 years: helping to elect candidates who share your values; standing against those who would enshrine discrimination into our Constitution; advocating on behalf of those living with HIV/AIDS; and fighting for progress in our capital and across America. (Applause.)

This story, this fight continue now. And I'm here with a simple message: I'm here with you in that fight. (Applause.) For even as we face extraordinary challenges as a nation, we cannot -- and we will not -- put aside issues of basic equality. I greatly appreciate the support I've received from many in this room. I also appreciate that many of you don't believe progress has come fast enough. I want to be honest about that, because it's important to be honest among friends.

Now, I've said this before, I'll repeat it again -- it's not for me to tell you to be patient, any more than it was for others to counsel patience to African Americans petitioning for equal rights half a century ago. (Applause.) But I will say this: We have made progress and we will make more. And I think it's important to remember that there is not a single issue that my administration deals with on a daily basis that does not touch on the lives of the LGBT community. (Applause.) We all have a stake in reviving this economy. We all have a stake in putting people back to work. We all have a stake in improving our schools and achieving quality, affordable health care. We all have a stake in meeting the difficult challenges we face in Iraq and Afghanistan. (Applause.)

For while some may wish to define you solely by your sexual orientation or gender identity alone, you know -- and I know -- that none of us wants to be defined by just one part of what makes us whole. (Applause.) You're also parents worried about your children's futures. You're spouses who fear that you or the person you love will lose a job. You're workers worried about the rising cost of health insurance. You're soldiers. You are neighbors. You are friends. And, most importantly, you are Americans who care deeply about this country and its future. (Applause.)

So I know you want me working on jobs and the economy and all the other issues that we're dealing with. But my commitment to you is unwavering even as we wrestle with these enormous problems. And while progress may be taking longer than you'd like as a result of all that we face -- and that's the truth -- do not doubt the direction we are heading and the destination we will reach. (Applause.)

My expectation is that when you look back on these years, you will see a time in which we put a stop to discrimination against gays and lesbians -- whether in the office or on the battlefield. (Applause.) You will see a time in which we as a nation finally recognize relationships between two men or two women as just as real and admirable as relationships between a man and a woman. (Applause.) You will see a nation that's valuing and cherishing these families as we build a more perfect union -- a union in which gay Americans are an important part. I am committed to these goals. And my administration will continue fighting to achieve them.

And there's no more poignant or painful reminder of how important it is that we do so than the loss experienced by Dennis and Judy Shepard, whose son Matthew was stolen in a terrible act of violence 11 years ago. In May, I met with Judy -- who's here tonight with her husband -- I met her in the Oval Office, and I promised her that we were going to pass an inclusive hate crimes bill -- a bill named for her son. (Applause.)

This struggle has been long. Time and again we faced opposition. Time and again, the measure was defeated or delayed. But the Shepards never gave up. (Applause.) They turned tragedy into an unshakeable commitment. (Applause.) Countless activists and organizers never gave up. You held vigils, you spoke out, year after year, Congress after Congress. The House passed the bill again this week. (Applause.) And I can announce that after more than a decade, this bill is set to pass and I will sign it into law. (Applause.)

It's a testament to the decade-long struggle of Judy and Dennis, who tonight will receive a tribute named for somebody who inspired so many of us -- named for Senator Ted Kennedy, who fought tirelessly for this legislation. (Applause.) And it's a testament to the Human Rights Campaign and those who organized and advocated. And it's a testament to Matthew and to others who've been the victims of attacks not just meant to break bones, but to break spirits -- not meant just to inflict harm, but to instill fear. Together, we will have moved closer to that day when no one has to be afraid to be gay in America. (Applause.) When no one has to fear walking down the street holding the hand of the person they love. (Applause.)

But we know there's far more work to do. We're pushing hard to pass an inclusive employee non-discrimination bill. (Applause.) For the first time ever, an administration official testified in Congress in favor of this law. Nobody in America should be fired because they're gay, despite doing a great job and meeting their responsibilities. It's not fair. It's not right. We're going to put a stop to it. (Applause.) And it's for this reason that if any of my nominees are attacked not for what they believe but for who they are, I will not waver in my support, because I will not waver in my commitment to ending discrimination in all its forms. (Applause.)

We are reinvigorating our response to HIV/AIDS here at home and around the world. (Applause.) We're working closely with the Congress to renew the Ryan White program and I look forward to signing it into law in the very near future. (Applause.) We are rescinding the discriminatory ban on entry to the United States based on HIV status. (Applause.) The regulatory process to enact this important change is already underway. And we also know that HIV/AIDS continues to be a public health threat in many communities, including right here in the District of Columbia. Jeffrey Crowley, the Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy, recently held a forum in Washington, D.C., and is holding forums across the country, to seek input as we craft a national strategy to address this crisis.

We are moving ahead on Don't Ask Don't Tell. (Applause.) We should not be punishing patriotic Americans who have stepped forward to serve this country. We should be celebrating their willingness to show such courage and selflessness on behalf of their fellow citizens, especially when we're fighting two wars. (Applause.)

We cannot afford to cut from our ranks people with the critical skills we need to fight any more than we can afford -- for our military's integrity -- to force those willing to do so into careers encumbered and compromised by having to live a lie. So I'm working with the Pentagon, its leadership, and the members of the House and Senate on ending this policy. Legislation has been introduced in the House to make this happen. I will end Don't Ask, Don't Tell. That's my commitment to you. (Applause.)

It is no secret that issues of great concern to gays and lesbians are ones that raise a great deal of emotion in this country. And it's no secret that progress has been incredibly difficult -- we can see that with the time and dedication it took to pass hate crimes legislation. But these issues also go to the heart of who we are as a people. Are we a nation that can transcend old attitudes and worn divides? Can we embrace our differences and look to the hopes and dreams that we share? Will we uphold the ideals on which this nation was founded: that all of us are equal, that all of us deserve the same opportunity to live our lives freely and pursue our chance at happiness? I believe we can; I believe we will. (Applause.)

And that is why -- that's why I support ensuring that committed gay couples have the same rights and responsibilities afforded to any married couple in this country. (Applause.) I believe strongly in stopping laws designed to take rights away and passing laws that extend equal rights to gay couples. I've required all agencies in the federal government to extend as many federal benefits as possible to LGBT families as the current law allows. And I've called on Congress to repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage Act and to pass the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act. (Applause.) And we must all stand together against divisive and deceptive efforts to feed people's lingering fears for political and ideological gain.

For the struggle waged by the Human Rights Campaign is about more than any policy we can enshrine into law. It's about our capacity to love and commit to one another. It's about whether or not we value as a society that love and commitment. It's about our common humanity and our willingness to walk in someone else's shoes: to imagine losing a job not because of your performance at work but because of your relationship at home; to imagine worrying about a spouse in the hospital, with the added fear that you'll have to produce a legal document just to comfort the person you love -- (applause) -- to imagine the pain of losing a partner of decades and then discovering that the law treats you like a stranger. (Applause.)

If we are honest with ourselves we'll admit that there are too many who do not yet know in their lives or feel in their hearts the urgency of this struggle. That's why I continue to speak about the importance of equality for LGBT families -- and not just in front of gay audiences. That's why Michelle and I have invited LGBT families to the White House to participate in events like the Easter Egg Roll -- because we want to send a message. (Applause.) And that's why it's so important that you continue to speak out, that you continue to set an example, that you continue to pressure leaders -- including me -- and to make the case all across America. (Applause.)

So, tonight I'm hopeful -- because of the activism I see in this room, because of the compassion I've seen all across America, and because of the progress we have made throughout our history, including the history of the movement for LGBT equality.

Soon after the protests at Stonewall 40 years ago, the phone rang in the home of a soft-spoken elementary school teacher named Jeanne Manford. It was 1:00 in the morning, and it was the police. Now, her son, Morty, had been at the Stonewall the night of the raids. Ever since, he had felt within him a new sense of purpose. So when the officer told Jeanne that her son had been arrested, which was happening often to gay protesters, she was not entirely caught off guard. And then the officer added one more thing, "And you know, he's homosexual." (Laughter.) Well, that police officer sure was surprised when Jeanne responded, "Yes, I know. Why are you bothering him?" (Applause.)

And not long after, Jeanne would be marching side-by-side with her son through the streets of New York. She carried a sign that stated her support. People cheered. Young men and women ran up to her, kissed her, and asked her to talk to their parents. And this gave Jeanne and Morty an idea.

And so, after that march on the anniversary of the Stonewall protests, amidst the violence and the vitriol of a difficult time for our nation, Jeanne and her husband Jules -- two parents who loved their son deeply -- formed a group to support other parents and, in turn, to support their children, as well. At the first meeting Jeanne held, in 1973, about 20 people showed up. But slowly, interest grew. Morty's life, tragically, was cut short by AIDS. But the cause endured. Today, the organization they founded for parents, families, and friends of lesbians and gays -- (applause) -- has more than 200,000 members and supporters, and has made a difference for countless families across America. And Jeanne would later say, "I considered myself such a traditional person. I didn't even cross the street against the light." (Laughter.) "But I wasn't going to let anybody walk over Morty." (Applause.)

That's the story of America: of ordinary citizens organizing, agitating and advocating for change; of hope stronger than hate; of love more powerful than any insult or injury; of Americans fighting to build for themselves and their families a nation in which no one is a second-class citizen, in which no one is denied their basic rights, in which all of us are free to live and love as we see fit. (Applause.)

Tonight, somewhere in America, a young person, let's say a young man, will struggle to fall to sleep, wrestling alone with a secret he's held as long as he can remember. Soon, perhaps, he will decide it's time to let that secret out. What happens next depends on him, his family, as well as his friends and his teachers and his community. But it also depends on us -- on the kind of society we engender, the kind of future we build.

I believe the future is bright for that young person. For while there will be setbacks and bumps along the road, the truth is that our common ideals are a force far stronger than any division that some might sow. These ideals, when voiced by generations of citizens, are what made it possible for me to stand here today. (Applause.) These ideals are what made it possible for the people in this room to live freely and openly when for most of history that would have been inconceivable. That's the promise of America, HRC. That's the promise we're called to fulfill. (Applause.) Day by day, law by law, changing mind by mind, that is the promise we are fulfilling.

Thank you for the work you're doing. God bless you. God bless America. (Applause.)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BO !!!!

☮ CR ❤ — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 18:22:35 EDT

..........* * HAPPY BIRTHDAY BO !!! * *

Born 10/9/08

Japan's Obama City erupts in joy over Nobel Peace Prize

☮ CR ❤ — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 19:32:58 EDT

10/9/09 TOKYO (AFP) – The small Japanese port city of Obama hailed Friday its namesake, US President Barack Obama, who was earlier sensationally awarded the Nobel Peace Prize just nine months into his term.

"I knew he was talking about world peace, but I cannot believe this has come so soon," Seiji Fujiwara, a local tourism official who led a support campaign for the US president, told Jiji Press.

Obama means "small shore" in Japanese, and the residents of the small central city of 32,000 people have rallied behind Barack Obama since his presidential campaign as a junior senator.

President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, with the jury hailing his "extraordinary" efforts in international diplomacy and to hasten nuclear disarmament.

In 2008 supporters in Obama City followed the US presidential election race closely, putting up posters wishing him luck and making sweets bearing his likeness.

It was Barack Obama himself who first drew attention to the connection.

He told Japan's TBS network in 2006 that, when he flew into Japan, a passport control officer said he was from Obama City.

His Nobel Prize award has further inspired Obama residents.

"We want to create banners to celebrate the award and put them up at our shopping arcades and at the city hall," Fujiwara said."He is going to visit Japan in November. We enthusiastically invite him to visit our city," he said.

Obama City mayor Koji Matsuzaki also paid tribute. "For a city that supported him, there is no greater joy than this," he said in a statement.

House Votes to Expand Definition

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:38:15 EDT

10/8/09 Carl Hulse - NYTimes

WASHINGTON — The House voted by a wide margin on Thursday to expand the definition of violent federal hate crimes to cover those committed because of a victim’s gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

Democrats and advocates hailed the 281-to-146 vote, which put the measure on the brink of becoming law, as the culmination of a long push to curb violent expressions of bias like the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming college student.

“Left unchecked, crimes of this kind threaten to ruin the very fabric of America,” said Representative Susan Davis, Democrat of California.

The hate-crimes measure was approved as part of a broad $681 billion Pentagon policy measure, a strategy that infuriated House Republicans who accused Democrats of employing a form of legislative blackmail.

Most Democrats voted for the measure, as did more than 40 Republicans.

Republicans who opposed the measure said Democrats were essentially forcing through contentious social policy by tying it to a highly popular measure that authorizes military pay, benefits, weapons programs and other essentials for the armed forces. Even some Republican members of the Armed Services Committee who helped write the underlying legislation said they would oppose it solely because of the hate-crimes provision.

“We believe this is a poison pill, poisonous enough that we refuse to be blackmailed into voting for a piece of social agenda that has no place in this bill,” said Representative Todd Akin of Missouri, a senior Republican member of the committee.

Republicans also criticized the substance of the legislation as an effort to prosecute “thought crimes” in which the motivation of the attacker has to be discerned.

Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, the Republican leader, called it radical social policy. “The idea that we’re going to pass a law that’s going to add further charges to someone based on what they may have been thinking, I think is wrong,” he said.

The final Pentagon measure must still be approved by the Senate. But the hate-crimes provision has broad support there, and Senator John McCain of Arizona, the senior Republican on the Armed Services Committee, said the contents of the overall measure outweighed his own objections to including the hate crimes provision.

President Obama supports the hate-crimes measure, though the White House has raised objections to other elements of the bill related to military procurement. If it is signed into law, the legislation would reflect the ability of Democrats to move ahead on difficult measures with their increased majorities in Congress and a Democrat in the White House.

“Elections have consequences,” Mr. McCain said.

The hate-crime provision had passed both the House and Senate in previous years as a separate bill, but the bill could never clear its final hurdles. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said it was fitting that Congress was acting now because Monday is the 11th anniversary of Mr. Shepard’s death. The legislation is known as the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Hate Crimes Prevention Act, for Mr. Shephard and a black man who was killed in a race-based attack in Texas the same year.

“When I came to Congress 22 years ago, hate-crimes legislation was one of the items on my agenda,” Ms. Pelosi said.

The hate-crimes legislation allocates $5 million a year to the Justice Department to provide assistance to local communities in investigating such crimes, a process that can sometimes strain local police resources. It allows the Justice Department to assist in the investigation and prosecution of such crimes if asked to do so by local authorities.

“The problem of crimes motivated by bias is sufficiently serious, widespread, and interstate in nature as to warrant federal assistance to states, local jurisdictions, and Indian tribes,” the measure says.

Senator Carl Levin, the Michigan Democrat who is chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation recorded reports of more than 77,000 hate crimes from 1998 through 2007 and that crimes based on sexual orientation were on an upward trend.

“The hate-crimes act will hopefully deter people from being targeted for violent attacks because of the color of their skin or their religion, their disability, their gender, or their sexual orientation, regardless of where the crime takes place,” he said.

Raising a criticism of the legislation that has circulated among conservatives, Representative Mike Pence of Indiana, the No. 3 House Republican, said the measure could inhibit freedom of speech and deter religious leaders from discussing their views of moral traditions for fear of being caught up in the law.

“It is just simply wrong to use a bill designed to support our troops to reverse the very freedoms for which they fight,” he said.

But Democrats noted that the bill specifically bars prosecution based on an individual’s expression of “racial, religious, political or other beliefs.” It also states that nothing in the measure should be “construed to diminish any rights under the 1st Amendment to the Constitution.”

Still, Republicans said the hate-crimes measure was unconstitutional, and a court challenge is expected if it becomes law.

Obama focus on Afganistan

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:42:23 EDT

Obama focusing on al-Qaida, not Taliban

10/8/09 JENNIFER LOVEN, AP

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is prepared to accept some Taliban involvement in Afghanistan's political future and appears inclined to send only as many more U.S. troops as needed to keep al-Qaida at bay, a senior administration official said Thursday.

The sharpened focus by Obama's team on fighting al-Qaida above all other goals, while downgrading the emphasis on the Taliban, comes in the midst of an intensely debated administration review of the increasingly unpopular eight-year-old war.

Though aides stress that the president's final decision on any changes is still at least two weeks away, the emerging thinking suggests that he would be very unlikely to favor a large military increase of the kind being advocated by the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

McChrystal's troop request is said to include a range of options, from adding as few as 10,000 combat troops to — the general's strong preference — as many as 40,000.

Obama's developing strategy on the Taliban will "not tolerate their return to power," the senior official said in an interview with The Associated Press. But the U.S. would fight only to keep the Taliban from retaking control of Afghanistan's central government — something it is now far from being capable of — and from giving renewed sanctuary in Afghanistan to al-Qaida, the official said.

The official is involved in the discussions and was authorized to speak about them but not to be identified by name because the review is still under way.

Bowing to the reality that the Taliban is too ingrained in Afghanistan's culture to be entirely defeated, the administration is prepared, as it has been for some time, to accept some Taliban role in parts of Afghanistan, the official said. That could mean paving the way for Taliban members willing to renounce violence to participate in a central government — though there has been little receptiveness to this among the Taliban. It might even mean ceding some regions of the country to the Taliban.

Obama has conferred nearly every day this week on the war, and was continuing that Thursday afternoon with Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

On Wednesday, the eighth anniversary of the war launched by President George W. Bush after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Obama and more than a dozen officials in his war council met for three hours to focus on Afghanistan's neighbor, Pakistan. Another of those larger discussions — the fourth of five currently scheduled — is set for Friday, on Afghanistan. That meeting also could feature the group's first discussion of specific troop options.

In the first two of the sessions, which are taking place in the secure Situation Room in the White House basement, Obama kept returning to one question for his advisers: Who is our adversary, the official said.

The answer to Obama's question was al-Qaida, as it was in March when Obama first announced an Afghanistan strategy.

But amid changing circumstances in Afghanistan, the implications of that renewed determination for the current war debate are many.

There now are no more than 100 al-Qaida in Afghanistan. Instead, the U.S. fight in Afghanistan is against the Taliban, now increasingly being defined by the Obama team as distinct from al-Qaida. While still dangerous, the Taliban is seen as an indigenous movement with almost entirely local and territorial aims, less of a threat to the U.S. than the terrorist network.

Obama's team believes some elements in the Taliban are aligned with al-Qaida, with its transnational reach and aims of attacking the West, but probably not the majority and mostly for tactical rather than ideological reasons, the official said.

"They're not the same type of group," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. "It's certainly not backed up by any of the intelligence."

That leaves the primary aim in Afghanistan to deny al-Qaida any ability to regroup there as it did when the Taliban was in power before the 2001 invasion that ousted them. And this points to a smaller military increase in Afghanistan and a bigger focus on surgical strikes against terrorists in Pakistan and elsewhere — essentially the approach being advocated by Biden as an alternative to the McChrystal recommendation for a fuller counterinsurgency effort inside Afghanistan.

Biden has argued for keeping the American force there around the 68,000 already authorized, including the 21,000 extra troops Obama ordered earlier this year, but significantly increasing the use of unmanned Predator drones and special forces that have been successful in Pakistan, Somalia and elsewhere.

There also is increasing reluctance among Obama's advisers to commit large additional numbers of troops because of concerns about the impact on already severely strained U.S. forces.

The administration has been encouraged by the Pakistani government's recent willingness to more aggressively battle extremists inside its borders. Getting additional cooperation from Pakistan is delicate, as the anti-extremist operations remain extremely controversial in that country, and the U.S.-backed civilian government in Islamabad is weak. But the administration sees opportunity there nonetheless.

Clinton has not tipped her hand as to how she is leaning in the sessions, according to aides. While she is broadly supportive of building up troop levels — although not necessarily in the numbers favored by McChrystal — she also believes the military cannot be the only focus, said the aides, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to detail her views.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates, long wary of a large troop presence in Afghanistan, appears to have grown more comfortable with the prospect of a moderate, middle-path increase.

Many lawmakers from Obama's own Democratic Party do not want to see additional U.S. troops sent to Afghanistan. According to a new Associated Press-GfK poll, public support for the war has dropped to 40 percent from 44 percent in July.

Republicans, meanwhile, are urging Obama to heed the military commanders' calls soon or risk failure. "Unnecessary delay could undermine our opportunity for success," House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio said Thursday.

**************

10/8/09 MSNBC Morning Joe interview with Brzezinsk:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/25813282#25813282

Brzezinski said in that interview:

"Taliban is a fundamentalist revision to the past, it is intolerant, it is primitive but it is not oriented toward some sort of global goals and it is not oriented particularly in terms of hostility towards us (America).

Al Quida is a much more revolutionary, obviously a terrorist organization.

We should not be driving them together, we should be serperating them. I think that if we were willing to cut more deals locally, empasize much more assistance to different regions, working through if necessary local war lords, I think we would be doing much better."

Fired up? The grass-roots health care battle

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 21:06:00 EDT

10/7/09 Beth Fouhy - AP

NEW YORK – Fired up? Ready to go? You might not know it from the way President Barack Obama's grass-roots supporters have been largely drowned out in the raucous debate over his health care plan.

Yes, they're behind him, officials say — volunteering in their communities and contacting lawmakers in Congress. But some Obama organizers are calling their forces a "silent majority," embracing Republican terminology of long ago. And if the final legislation doesn't include a government run plan to compete with private insurers, they may be invisible, too.

While opponents of the health care revamp have largely controlled the image war with rowdy town halls and a huge march on Washington last month, Obama supporters have been mobilizing across the country as well, tapping into the unprecedented network his presidential campaign built last year.

"We're building a long-term organization with leaders in the community who are trained. It was successful in the election and it will be successful again," says Jeremy Bird, deputy director of Organizing for America.

OFA, the pro-Obama effort annexed to the Democratic National Committee, says it has enlisted more than 2 million people in active support of the plan since the beginning of the summer. It recently completed a 19-stop cross country bus tour, and leaders say they have held over 18,000 health care events in all 50 states and 435 congressional districts.

The intensity of such efforts is difficult to gauge, particularly when compared to the angry town hall meetings across the country over the summer and the "tea party" march that drew tens of thousands to Washington. A flood of questions at one recent OFA meeting in New York suggested it's far easier to ramp up the campaign to defeat the plan, even if proponents are turning out in the large numbers OFA claims.

What, some in the group of 50 or so pro-Obama volunteers asked, are the specifics of the health care bills moving through Congress? Do they all include provisions for end-of-life counseling, which led to the erroneous "death panel" accusations leveled by some Republicans? And will Obama stand firm on the federal insurance option to compete with private coverage?

"Where can we get the information to speak intelligently and cogently about it?" Queens resident David Dawson asked about the plan. Others complained that Obama had waffled on the federal "public option" and suggested they might not get involved in helping push for the overhaul as a result.

Organizer Geoff Berman acknowledged the concerns but urged attendees to focus on other aspects of the plan, including the central provision to keep insurers from refusing coverage because of pre-existing conditions.

"There are other important parts of the health care legislation President Obama doesn't want to be lost on people by the entire dialogue being about the public option," Berman told the group.

However, Howard Dean, the former Democratic National Committee chairman and 2004 presidential contender, said the public health care plan is essential to motivating the party's base voters.

"It has to be there. Without the public option, it's going to be very hard to organize Democrats," Dean said in an interview.

To be sure, not everything is harmonious on the anti-overhaul side either as mainstream Republicans and disaffected conservatives jostle for advantage.

After electoral wipeouts in 2006 and 2008, the Republican National Committee has used the health care debate to help build state parties and increase GOP membership. It's also proved an effective fundraising tool, with the RNC adding more than 2,400 donors a day in September, up from just under 400 per day in February.

But the most visible anti-revamp organizing has been done by conservatives who say they are fed up with both political parties in Washington. Many stayed out of the 2008 presidential race because they'd grown disillusioned with George W. Bush and were never much excited about GOP nominee John McCain.

These people have been drawn to the tea party protests largely organized by FreedomWorks, founded by former GOP House Leader Dick Armey. FreedomWorks and affiliated groups such as the National Taxpayers Union have adapted organizing tactics pioneered by the political left, many of which were well executed by the Obama campaign last year.

Spokesman Adam Brandon said all staffers are given a copy of "Rules for Radicals," the famed community organizing manual penned by the late activist and author Saul Alinsky. Brandon said most of the group's agenda is dictated by the grass roots.

"We've done a fantastic job of organizing, and we want to have an influence on the political process — health care, cap and trade (energy) legislation and next year, a midterm election," Brandon said. He added that his group is largely disdainful of the RNC's efforts and blames Republicans and Democrats alike for excessive government spending and debt.

"RNC strategists don't know what's going on and wouldn't understand if they tried," Brandon said. "If Michael Steele were to come and say how much Republicans had promoted liberty in the last eight years, people would laugh."

Debbie Dooley, a FreedomWorks volunteer in Georgia, said she got involved after last year's federal bank bailout and is now doing most of her organizing around local tax matters and opposition to health care reform.

"To build a grass-roots army and keep them energized, you have to address all the issues," Dooley said

Such efforts have been dismissed by many Democrats as fake grass roots, or "astroturfing." And pro-Obama organizers say that while their campaign may lack the intensity of the anti-Obama forces, it is more strategic and just as committed. No one would expect the exuberance of the president's "fired up" 2008 election rallies.

At a coffee shop outside Columbus, Ohio, recently, about 20 pro-Obama volunteers phoned through long lists of local Democratic voters, asking them to press members of Congress to support the president's plan.

"We realized that we need to have Obama's back," said Peter Kovarik, an adjunct biology professor at Columbus State University and OFA volunteer who said his job didn't provide health insurance.

Volunteers like Kovarik are giving voice to the "silent majority" that supports Obama's plan, said Ohio OFA director Greg Schultz.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091007/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_health_care_organizing;_ylt=AiO9PKdXK9kd1z62FNmlCV2yFz4D;_ylu=X3oDMTJ1MHFtM2luBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkxMDA3L3VzX2hlYWx0aF9jYXJlX29yZ2FuaXppbmcEY3BvcwM2BHBvcwMzBHNlYwN5bl9oZWFkbGluZV9saXN0BHNsawNmaXJlZHVwdGhlZ3I-

About that assumed necessity for 60 Senate votes...

The Bard of Wilmette — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 19:54:12 EDT

I have not seen anybody discuss the issue so far, so maybe the answer is so obvious that it is not worth the brief time to address this question: Is it really necessary for a healthcare reform bill to get the support of 60 senators? I understand the business about filibusters and cloture votes, but the press has implicitly assumed that, without exception, every senator who does not support the Senate legislation will automatically support a filibuster against the bill. Maybe this is true, but have our Senate leaders (along with former Senators Obama and Biden) even considered the possibility that one or a few senators might behave differently from what is assumed?

One famous TV newsman, who should know better, brought up the issue again yesterday about Barack Obama's "present" votes while in the Illinois State Senate. The implication was that Obama was too much of a weasel to vote for or against a proposed bill, so he voted "present" in a cynical attempt to avoid committing himself. The context of yesterday's reference was in relation to Obama's taking some time to consider his alternative courses of action if Afghanistan. In the Illinois state legislature, "present" has a specific meaning, of which most of Obama's critics are either ignorant or else willfully distorting the picture. In effect, "present" means the same thing as "nay" (or "no"), but is basically a signal that the legislator supports the intentions of the bill, but that the bill as written is too flawed to support. I bring this up now, only to illustrate that what may seem obvious is not necessarily so.

Back to the subject of getting healthcare reform through Congress, it appears that the House will pass some kind of a bill, the Senate will pass a very different kind of a bill, and hopefully a conference committee will work out some unified bill that the president can sign. This process is clearly difficult, and it is not yet certain that anything will eventually pass both houses of Congress. It would be a difficult task in any circumstances, but it is made much more difficult by the fact that a determined group of 41 senators can block any legislation. Even getting unity among the Democrats in the Senate seems impossible. Some of the progressives have indicated that they will absolutely refuse to support a bill that does not contain certain provisions, while some moderates in the same party apparently will refuse to support a bill that does contain those same provisions.

Is it at least possible that a small number of senators could be persuaded, even if the bill that emerges is personally disappointing to them, to invoke cloture? In other words, they might not vote in favor of the legislation itself, but they would agree to kill a filibuster that would prevent the Senate from voting the bill up or down. President Obama's popularity may not be as high as it was when he first took office (those poll ratings were never going to be sustainable), but he is still by far the most popular and admired politician in the country. There have got to be some senators who owe him, at minimum, the opportunity for a Senate bill to come to a floor vote. In addition, some "blue state" Republicans, most notably Olympia Snowe, might find it to their own political advantage to kill a filibuster, even if they do not support the bill. The Senate bill may not really need 60 votes.

I have previously written about my own preferences about what healthcare reform bill I would like to see enacted into law, but I will not rehash the arguments here, because that would confuse the more basic issue. Politically, Obama needs some kind of healthcare reform bill to pass, and I would rather see a disappointing healthcare reform bill pass than to have no healthcare reform pass. While the task is difficult, I believe it is at least possible that support by a slightly under 60 senators could be enough.

New National Parks Director

☮ CR ❤ — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:50:57 EDT

Bay Area resident Jon Jarvis takes the helm as national parks director

10/7/09 By Paul Rogers - San Jose Mercury News

n 1976, when Jon Jarvis was just out of college, he took a temporary job with the National Park Service handing out maps about America's bicentennial celebration to tourists on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Across the 33 years since then he's been a park ranger and superintendent across the West. He's led hikes, held campfire talks, battled forest fires, made arrests, even rappelled down cliffs.

And now Jarvis, 56, a Bay Area resident, is heading back to Washington D.C. for his dream job — as President Obama's new national parks director.

Confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Sept. 24, the Pinole resident has worked since 2002 at the National Park Service's regional headquarters in Oakland, supervising all 54 national park units in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada and Hawaii.

A biologist by training, on Tuesday he said in an interview he plans to increase scientific research in national parks, extend their educational role to put more rangers in school classrooms and broaden the parks' appeal to America's growing ethnic populations.

Like many long-time national parks staff members, Jarvis was buoyed following last week's PBS broadcast of filmmaker Ken Burns' six-part, 12-hour series "The National Parks: America's Best Idea." Many parks advocates hope the series will inspire a renewed interest in parks and lead to public demand for funding increases and expansion of the system.

"National parks show us, as Wallace Stegner said, at our best rather than our worst," Jarvis said. "At times like this when the country is faced with a rancorous public debate and a tough economy, people turn to parks. They come to them for quiet and contemplation and family gatherings. I think we are in for great renaissance."

Conflicting mission

The challenges are daunting, however. From Yosemite to the Statue of Liberty to the Everglades, America's 391 national park units are beloved by the American public, yet face a myriad of problems and controversies.

After promising to eliminate a massive backlog of maintenance problems — from leaking museums to cracked roads and overgrown trails — the Bush administration left office with an $8 billion maintenance backlog in the national park system.

The park service's mission, dating back to its origin in 1916, is to preserve America's most spectacular natural heritage and to provide for public recreation. That goal continues to spark deeply felt conflicts. How many snowmobiles should be allowed in Yellowstone? How many helicopters over the Grand Canyon?

Jarvis will supervise 22,000 employees and a budget of $2.5 billion. As America's 18th national parks director, he is the face of the agency visited each year by 275 million people.

Environmentalists praised the selection of Jarvis, calling him a strong advocate for conservation and science in parks.

"We're elated that such a committed, knowledgeable individual has been chosen," said Ron Sundergill, Pacific region director of the National Parks Conservation Association, a advocacy group based in San Francisco. "The background he has is perfect for the job."

Long experience

A native of Virginia, Jarvis grew up hunting, fishing and hiking with his father and brother in Shenandoah Valley. He earned a degree in biology from William & Mary college in 1975, then drove across the country and camped in Yellowstone, Glacier and Olympic national parks.

After the short stint working on the National Mall, he became a ranger at various parks including Oregon's Crater Lake, a resources supervisor at North Cascades, and in the 1990s served as superintendent of Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho, then Wrangell-St. Elias National Park in Alaska and Mount Rainier National Park in Washington.

Jarvis, said Tuesday he would like to see the creation of at least two new park units. One would commemorate farm labor leader Cesar Chavez, and another, at Port Chicago near Martinez, would mark a 1944 Naval explosion that killed 320 people and led to racially charged mutiny trials for 50 sailors who refused to work in the dangerous conditions.

He said the issue of snowmobiles in Yellowstone, where after several lawsuits over noise and smog, there is a daily limit of 318, is "far from settled." And he said he'd like to see Yosemite Valley campsites destroyed in a 1997 flood rebuilt out of the valley, on Tioga Road and other locations, rather than in the valley along the sensitive Merced River.

"Unfortunately, the public's perception is that Yosemite is just the valley," he said. "There are plenty of opportunities to end up with a no-net loss of campgrounds."

Jarvis is one of several Northern California residents to take top jobs in the Obama administration this year, including Energy Secretary Steven Chu, CIA Director Leon Panetta and U.S.Geological Survey director Marcia McNutt.

Animal Cruelty Law

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:25:42 EDT

Supreme Court Hears Arguments on Animal Cruelty Law

10/6/09 Humane Society of the United States

The HSUS Speaking with media after today's hearing.

Today, I was one of about 200 people in attendance as the U.S. Supreme Court heard from attorneys for the United States and for dogfighting impresario Robert Stevens in a case testing the constitutionality of the federal Depiction of Animal Cruelty Law. Deputy Solicitor General Neal Katyal, representing the United States, argued passionately and persuasively for a ruling to uphold the law and stop the wanton cruelty spawned through the production of commercially available videos. The HSUS filed an amicus brief in the case, along with 26 state Attorneys General. A host of media organizations, the ACLU, the NRA, and the Safari Club International filed amicus briefs urging that the law be struck down.

I spoke to the press right after argument ended, and then issued the statement below.

"The Depiction of Animal Cruelty Law targets the sale of the most extreme and appalling abuses of animals—and these things only. This commercial conduct has no social or expressive value, and instead leaves a trail of suffering and misery that can be, for the most part, halted through a logical application of the law.

"At Tuesday’s hearing, all Justices acknowledged the critical societal importance of preventing animal cruelty, and allowed that Congress has an important role to play in drying up the market for these sordid products."

Minority groups join forces in health care debate

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:47:34 EDT

Minority groups join forces in health care debate

10/6/09 Eric Marrapodi - CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Minority groups joined forces Monday to form a coalition aimed at mobilizing African-American and Latino communities in the national debate over health care.

The NAACP Voter Fund, the National Council of La Raza, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights and the Campaign for Community Change will kick off an advertising campaign this week. The ads are aimed at pushing minorities to join the debate, specificially by reaching out to fiscally conservative "blue dog" Democrats and urging them to support President Barack Obama's health care plan.

Television, print and radio ads are set to begin on Thursday in Louisiana, Florida, Arkansas and North Carolina, in markets within those states with large minority populations. The ads, revealed Monday at Washington's National Press Club, will appear in both English and Spanish.

"Voices of extremists are loud and clear. Voices of insurance companies are loud and clear. We're here to make sure people of color are heard loud and clear," said Deepak Bhargava, director of the Campaign for Community Change.

"A growing body of public health research is clearly showing that your zip code is more important than your genetic code," said Brian Smedley, director of health policy of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. The nonprofit institution researches public policy issues of special concern to African Americans, according to its Web site.

Those racial inequities lead to inequities in health care, Smedley said.

"Today in America, it is not a guarantee that if you have an insurance card in your pocket, you get the timely quality health care that you need. In fact, for many people of color, you are in fact less likely, on average, than white patients to get the same quality of care."

Speakers at the Monday event included NAACP President Benjamin Todd Jealous, who spoke on behalf of the NAACP Voter Fund.

"This is a very personal fight," Jealous said. "We1ve seen 880,000 black people die unnecessarily in the 1990s. We've had hundreds of thousands in this decade and it's time to stop."

The coalition said its overarching principles are twofold: no one, it believes, should do without health care because of a lack of income, and patients should take precedence over profits.

It plans to push for the public option and insist that the health care legislation contain steps to eliminate racial disparities, offer complete health care access for all legal residents and promote cultural competence in a final plan.

"We're focusing our attention on what happens next week, when the finance committee completes its work on the bill, and when both the Senate Finance Committee and the Senate Health Committee come together to develop a merged bill that will be sent to the floor," said Wade Henderson, CEO of the Leadership Conference of Civil Rights.

The overall tone of the health care debate is concerning to Latinos, said Janet Murguia, CEO of the National Council of La Raza.

"I think there's a growing sentiment, anxiety, in the Latino community that this is not just an anti-immigrant, anti-undocumented — this has an anti-Latino sort of feel to it," she said. "And there's an effort to shut down the entire debate on this point."

When African-American and Latino voters join together, they create a voting bloc to be reckoned with, she said. "I think it's fair for all elected officials to be on notice that we're going to use that strength to move forward an agenda and hold elected officials accountable."

Jealous spoke of an "encouragement gap" in the black community and said African-Americans would not be a sure Democratic vote. "The days of Democratic senators counting black voters as a golf handicap has to stop," he said. "It has to stop."

Dalai Lama to meet with Obama after his trip to China

☮ CR ❤ — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:44:31 EDT

10/6/09 CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) –President Barack Obama will meet with the Dalai Lama after the president's trip to China, the State Department said Monday.

"The United States government thinks that he is an internationally revered religious and cultural figure, he is a Nobel Prize laureate," State
Department spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters.

"The president has decided that he will meet with the Dalai Lama at a mutually agreeable time.

The depression that did not happen

The Bard of Wilmette — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 22:01:43 EDT

In a famous Sherlock Holmes story, one of the important clues was a dog that did not bark. In evaluating the early stage of the Barack Obama presidency, one of the significant achievements may be the depression that did not happen. Sure, unemployment is 9.8%, the highest rate since Ronald Reagan's first term, and the U.S. economy at this time is hardly the backdrop for bragging rights. What we will never know for certain is what would have happened in the absence of some of the controversial measures taken by Barack Obama during the first year of his presidency. The U.S. has experienced a nasty recession, but it could have been a great deal worse. It looks like the recession may be technically over, in the sense that the economy could show positive growth in the quarter that ended Sept. 30, 2009. The numbers are not in yet, but it looks likely that the recession is over, or about to be over. High unemployment will continue to be a fact for some time to come, and for those who are unemployed, it has to feel more like a depression than a mere recession that may be technically over.

Former Vice-President Dick Cheney tells anybody who will listen at Fox News that the previous administration kept America safe for 7+ years after the "9/11" terrorist attacks in 2001. Given the rest of the legacy of that administration, there is little to brag about. The most significant achievements of the Bush "43" record are the tax cuts and the Iraq War. Both were presented to the American public on a foundation of lies, although I really do not want to rehash the arguments here. My point is that the main positive legacy that Bush "43" officials emphasize is the disaster that did not happen: a major terrorist attack in the U.S. after 2001. I have always thought that this was an overblown claim, and that their careless disregard for constitutional rights was not a necessary component for keeping America safe. Still, for the sake of the moment, let's concede the argument that Bush-Cheney kept us all safe from the terrorists after you-know-what. It is obvious that Bush administration officials, who want to portray their record in as positive terms as possible, are counting on the absence of later terrorist attacks in the U.S. as an important positive element of their legacy. Their biggest credit, in other words, is not for something that actually happened, but for something that did not happen.

In a similar line of thinking, I believe that a major achievement of the first year of the Obama presidency is a disaster that did not happen: an economic depression reminiscent of the 1930's. There has definitely been a serious recession, and unemployment will remain uncomfortably high for many months after the resumption of positive economic growth. The recession was brought on by the collective actions of governments, companies, and individuals over a long period of time. President Obama inherited a bad recession, and irresponsible stewardship from the federal government during both Republican and Democratic administrations contributed to the problem. A long period of very low interest rates discouraged saving and encouraged increased debt. In effect, presidents and congresses continued to put off the needed changes, because it was easier to put off the day of reckoning and let their successors get the blame than to assume the responsibility themselves. It does no good for Obama to blame his predecessor(s) for the conditions confronting him. He knew what he was getting into, and he wanted to be president anyway. The U.S. economy is badly in need of certain adjustments, and there is no way to make those adjustments painless.

The U.S. economy may be starting to recover, but it will not feel very satisfying for quite some time. This would be the case, no matter who was president. Where I believe that Obama deserves some major credit is that the recession did not turn into a 1930's-style depression. It could have happened. The stimulus bill, which I thought was basically a good idea but not well executed, is criticized for being ineffective. It may have been ineffective in bringing down unemployment, but its main effect - and I don't know if Obama will ever get credit for this - is that it prevented a far worse economic downturn than what actually happened.

Economics columnist Robert Samuelson, who is hardly an apologist for Barack Obama, has an interesting column on the subject. Most of us, including yours truly, are not old enough to remember the 1930's, so we may sometimes be naive in characterizing a modern recession as being similar to the depression. This is not at all the case. Here is a link to Samuelson's column in today's (10/5/09) Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/opinions/?nid=top_opinions

For One Senior, Medicaid Provides Model Care

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 21:12:41 EDT

10/5/09 Jeff Brady - NPR

Lela Petersen thinks about health care a lot these days. She's a small business owner who pays $1,150 a month to an HMO, covering her and her husband. Petersen doesn't have any other option, but her 94-year-old mother, Gracie Scarrow, is another story.

A Life Under Medicaid

As a nurse's aide, Gracie Scarrow spent 20 years around nursing homes, and knew she never wanted to live in one. But the day came when she no longer had a choice.

For the past four years Scarrow has been receiving long-term care at the Lincoln County Hospital and Nursing Home in Hugo, Colo., paid for largely by her Medicaid coverage. Medicaid is the federal and state-funded program for the poor and disabled. Both mother and daughter say they are very satisfied with the program. Petersen says her mother is getting exactly the care she needs.

A Comfortable Life

At the nursing home, in her room she shares with another woman, Scarrow has decorated nearby shelves with stuffed animals she won playing bingo. She has a keyboard next to her bed, and with only a little prompting Scarrow will turn it on and play the old hymn "What a Friend We Have in Jesus."

Most days Scarrow seems to get along fine at the nursing home. She always carries an oxygen tank with her, even when she moves slowly down the hall to the dining room for lunch.

"I have congestive heart failure," says Scarrow, sitting on the edge of her bed. Before arriving here, she was living by herself until she passed out one night. "I had a heart pill in my hand, but I didn't take it."

Petersen says her mom couldn't afford the nursing home on her own. Her Social Security income is $600 a month and after selling her house she cleared only $3,500. A doctor suggested signing up for Medicaid to pay the $80,000 a year bill for her long-term care. Scarrow is left with about $50 of her Social Security check each month for spending money.

Petersen said, at first, her mother was embarrassed about accepting government help, because she's always been independent and supported herself. Much of her life was spent in facilities like this one, as a nurse's assistant.

"Mom worked in an era when health care was what it was called. It was called care. Kindness and care. In today's world, health care is money," said Petersen.

States Feel The Pinch

Colorado has nearly a half-million people on Medicaid and, like in a lot of other states, that number rose dramatically in the past year, increasing by more than 10 percent. The economy and unemployment are largely to blame.

Typically states and the federal government split the cost of Medicaid, though with the recent stimulus money the federal government is picking up a larger share now. Even with that help, Colorado has difficulty paying its share. Recently the governor trimmed payments to doctors and hospitals to help balance the state's budget.

Hoping For Overhaul

Politically, Petersen says she typically votes Republican. But last year she voted for Obama, and she's excited about efforts to overhaul health care in the United States. She's frustrated with the costs of her own coverage, but very happy with the Medicaid coverage her mother receives.

She doesn't have a specific solution for health care overhaul, but she does support things like tort reform and tighter regulations for insurance companies. In coming months, she'll watch closely to see what solutions policymakers in Washington come up with.

You can watch the video of Mrs. Scarrow's story at npr.org

Obama orders federal government to cut emissions

☮ CR ❤ — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 16:58:19 EDT

10/5/09 by Jeff Mason - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama ordered federal agencies on Monday to set a goal within 90 days for cutting their greenhouse gas emissions by 2020, the White House said, aiming to "lead by example" in fighting climate change.

The new executive order, signed by the president, mandates agencies across the federal government to "measure, manage, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions toward agency-defined targets," the White House said in a statement.

Other environmental measures such as reducing petroleum use in vehicle fleets by 30 percent by 2020, improving efficiency f water usage by 2020, and increasing rates of recycling by 2015 were also included in the order.

"The federal government can and should lead by example when it comes to creating innovative ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase energy efficiency, conserve water, reduce waste, and use environmentally-responsible products and technologies," Obama said in a statement.

Obama's international credentials on fighting climate change have been called into question as chances dim that the Senate will pass a bill mandating emissions cuts across the United States economy by December, when U.N. talks on a global warming treaty take place in Copenhagen.

The White House order may be intended to counter concerns about the president's climate change commitment.

The federal government is the largest consumer of energy in the U.S. economy, the statement noted, occupying nearly 500,000 buildings and operating more than 600,000 vehicles.

The order also calls on the government to "leverage federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies."

Stability & Security for all Americans

☮ CR ❤ — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 18:55:48 EDT

The Obama Plan: Stability & Security for all Americans

"It will provide more security and stability to those who have health insurance. It will provide insurance to those who don’t. And it will lower the cost of health care for our families, our businesses, and our government."

– President Barack Obama

If You Have Health Insurance - More Stability and Security

* Ends discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. Over the last three years, 12 million people were denied coverage directly or indirectly through high premiums due to a pre-existing condition. Under the President’s plan, it will be against the law for insurance companies to deny coverage for health reasons or risks.

* Limits premium discrimination based on gender and age. The President’s plan will end insurers’ practice of charging different premiums or denying coverage based on gender, and will limit premium variation based on age.

* Prevents insurance companies from dropping coverage when people are sick and need it most. The President’s plan prohibits insurance companies from rescinding coverage that has already been purchased except in cases of fraud. In most states, insurance companies can cancel a policy if any medical condition was not listed on the application – even one not related to a current illness or one the patient didn’t even know about. A recent Congressional investigation found that over five years, three large insurance companies cancelled coverage for 20,000 people, saving them from paying $300 million in medical claims - $300 million that became either an obligation for the patient’s family or bad debt for doctors and hospitals.

* Caps out-of pocket expenses so people don’t go broke when they get sick. The President’s plan will cap out-of-pocket expenses and will prohibit insurance companies from imposing annual or lifetime caps on benefit payments. A middle-class family purchasing health insurance directly from the individual insurance market today could spend up to 50 percent of household income on health care costs because there is no limit on out-of-pocket expenses.

* Eliminates extra charges for preventive care like mammograms, flu shots and diabetes tests to improve health and save money. The President’s plan ensures that all Americans have access to free preventive services under their health insurance plans. Too many Americans forgo needed preventive care, in part because of the cost of check-ups and screenings that can identify health problems early when they can be most effectively treated. For example, 24 percent of women age 40 and over have not received a mammogram in the past two years, and 38 percent of adults age 50 and over have never had a colon cancer screening.

* Protects Medicare for seniors. The President’s plan will extend new protections for Medicare beneficiaries that improve quality, coordinate care and reduce beneficiary and program costs. These protections will extend the life of the Medicare Trust Fund to pay for care for future generations.

* Eliminates the "donut-hole" gap in coverage for prescription drugs. The President’s plan begins immediately to close the Medicare "donut hole" - a current gap in its drug benefit - by providing a 50 percent discount on brand-name prescription drugs for seniors who fall into it. In 2007, over 8 million seniors hit this coverage gap in the standard Medicare drug benefit. By 2019, the President’s plan will completely close the "donut hole". The average out-of-pocket spending for such beneficiaries who lack another source of insurance is $4,080.

If You Don't Have Insurance - Quality, Affordable Choices for All Americans

* Creates a new insurance marketplace – the Exchange – that allows people without insurance and small businesses to compare plans and buy insurance at competitive prices. The President’s plan allows Americans who have health insurance and like it to keep it. But for those who lose their jobs, change jobs or move, new high quality, affordable options will be available in the exchange. Beginning in 2013, the Exchange will give Americans without access to affordable insurance on the job, and small businesses one-stop shopping for insurance where they can easily compare options based on price, benefits, and quality.

* Provides new tax credits to help people buy insurance. The President’s plan will provide new tax credits on a sliding scale to individuals and families that will limit how much of their income can be spent on premiums. There will also be greater protection for cost-sharing for out-of-pocket expenses.

* Provides small businesses tax credits and affordable options for covering employees. The President’s plan will also provide small businesses with tax credits to offset costs of providing coverage for their workers. Small businesses who for too long have faced higher prices than larger businesses, will now be eligible to enter the exchange so that they have lower costs and more choices for covering their workers.

* Offers a public health insurance option to provide the uninsured and those who can’t find affordable coverage with a real choice. The President believes this option will promote competition, hold insurance companies accountable and assure affordable choices. It is completely voluntary. The President believes the public option must operate like any private insurance company – it must be self-sufficient and rely on the premiums it collects.

* Immediately offers new, low-cost coverage through a national "high risk" pool to protect people with preexisting conditions from financial ruin until the new Exchange is created. For those Americans who cannot get insurance coverage today because of a pre-existing condition, the President’s plan will immediately make available coverage without a mark-up due to their health condition. This policy will offer protection against financial ruin until a wider array of choices become available in the new exchange in 2013.

For All Americans - Reins In the Cost of Health Care for Our Families, Our Businesses, and Our Government

* Won’t add a dime to the deficit and is paid for upfront. The President’s plan will not add one dime to the deficit today or in the future and is paid for in a fiscally responsible way. It begins the process of reforming the health care system so that we can further curb health care cost growth over the long term, and invests in quality improvements, consumer protections, prevention, and premium assistance. The plan fully pays for this investment through health system savings and new revenue including a fee on insurance companies that sell very expensive plans.

* Requires additional cuts if savings are not realized. Under the plan, if the savings promised at the time of enactment don’t materialize, the President will be required to put forth additional savings to ensure that the plan does not add to the deficit.

* Implements a number of delivery system reforms that begin to rein in health care costs and align incentives for hospitals, physicians, and others to improve quality. The President’s plan includes proposals that will improve the way care is delivered to emphasize quality over quantity, including: incentives for hospitals to prevent avoidable readmissions, pilots for new "bundled" payments in Medicare, and support for new models of delivering care through medical homes and accountable care organizations that focus on a coordinated approach to care and outcomes.

* Creates an independent commission of doctors and medical experts to identify waste, fraud and abuse in the health care system. The President’s plan will create an independent Commission, made up of doctors and medical experts, to make recommendations to Congress each year on how to promote greater efficiency and higher quality in Medicare. The Commission will not be authorized to propose or implement Medicare changes that ration care or affect benefits, eligibility or beneficiary access to care. It will ensure that your tax dollars go directly to caring for seniors.

* Orders immediate medical malpractice reform projects that could help doctors focus on putting their patients first, not on practicing defensive medicine. The President’s plan instructs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to move forward on awarding medical malpractice demonstration grants to states funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality as soon as possible.

* Requires large employers to cover their employees and individuals who can afford it to buy insurance so everyone shares in the responsibility of reform. Under the President’s plan, large businesses – those with more than 50 workers – will be required to offer their workers coverage or pay a fee to help cover the cost of making coverage affordable in the exchange. This will ensure that workers in firms not offering coverage will have affordable coverage options for themselves and their families. Individuals who can afford it will have a responsibility to purchase coverage – but there will be a "hardship exemption" for those who cannot.

WH Honey Gift to G-20 Spouses

☮ CR ❤ — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:14:26 EDT

Honey From White House Beehive is Part of First Lady Michelle Obama's Gifts For G20 Spouses

9/25/09 Posted by Eddie Gehman Kohan

The First Lady's gifts reference President Lincoln, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, and include the sweetest part of her food policy agenda

The beehive that's part of the White House Kitchen Garden has been providing honey for White House meals since official beekeeper Charlie Brandts first harvested it in June, and now its sweetness is going global, thanks to The Pittsburgh Summit. According to the White House, Mrs. Obama will be presenting G20 Spouses with a “one-of-a-kind porcelain tea set and honey vase designed exclusively for the occasion of The Pittsburgh Summit 2009, with honey harvested especially for the occasion from the White House beehive." That's got to be the best formal gift to originate from the White House to date, and it's also both an easy and completely appropriate call that Mrs. Obama is including a bit of the White House Kitchen Garden. Last week at the opening of the new Farmers Market by the White House, the First Lady noted that the garden is not only "one of the greatest things I've done in my life so far," but she also mentioned that it's the topic she's asked about most frequently by foreign dignitaries and heads of state (Bo the dog is the runner up for most popular conversation topic). Thus the Spouse Gift is both very personal, and will also be much appreciated. (Above: Mrs. Obama and President Obama await the arrival of world leaders at The Phipps Conservatory last night)

The special tea set was made by Pickard China of Antioch, Illinois, the Obamas home state. Pickard is a family owned biz--and also just happens to make the china for Air Force One, Camp David, Blair House, and the State Department--although you, too, can order your custom china from the company. The glass honey vase was designed by Caleb Siemon, a California glassblower, who's gone on the record that he believes glassblowers are "pyromaniacs at heart." He's a terrific pyromaniac, and his work is much collected. To further personalize the gift, Mrs. Obama signed the specially designed honey vases that Siemon designed. (Above: the official G20 Spouse gifts)

The official White House announcement about Mrs. Obama's gifts has more background and details on the reasoning behind the gift selections, and we've added the referential images:

*The Tea Set: The platinum and purple porcelain design of the tea cups is classic and contemporary and inspired by the gold and purple White House China that President and Mrs. Lincoln used in 1861. The use of platinum on the saucer symbolizes Pittsburgh's steel industry roots; the use of purple is the color of the state flower of Illinois, the Purple Violet, home states of both Presidents Lincoln and Obama. The porcelain is one-of-a-kind. (Photo: Original Lincoln china)

*A rose in the bottom of the tea cup represents both the official flower of the United States and the American Beauty rose, the official flower of Washington. There is a delicate three-flower bouquet that sits in the well of the saucer. It consists of the Purple Violet, the state flower of Illinois, the Mountain Laurel, the state flower of Pennsylvania (in photo) and the rose.

*The glass honey vase is an original design inspired by nature and made of a brilliant lead- free crystal mined from minerals found only in the United States.

White House chef and Food Initiative Coordinator Sam Kass has said that the White House beehive is expected to produce more than 100 pounds of honey this year, so there's plenty of honey to be handed out as state gifts, in addition to being used for White House occasions. Kass has also called the beehive "one of the greatest achievements of the garden." (Above: the beehive at the White House).

The Lincoln china that Mrs. Obama's gift tea set is based upon was created by Mary Todd Lincoln, who was the first First Lady to choose her own china set. The pink-purple color is called "Solferino," and was created by the E.V. Haughwout company of New York; 190 pieces were in the original set.

And there are no worries that the Official Obama Spouse Gift is too "feminine" for the male G20 spouses: Neither Joachim Sauer, husband of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, nor Nestor Kirchner, husband of Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, are in Pittsburgh. Though tea is not only bipartisan, it's also enjoyed by men, isn't it?

*Related G20 posts: The reception at The Phipps Conservatory; Foods at the G20 are local, organic, sustainable

*Photos of the White House Beehive are from last week, when Obama Foodorama was shooting the Kitchen Garden. Lincoln China picture from the Raleigh DeGeer Amyx collection, a private collection of White House china from many administrations. Top photo by Getty pool.