Monday, August 31, 2009

The White House Gets Sued for Its Fishy Email Program

Sammy Benoit

"There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can't keep track of all of them here at the White House, we're asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov."

The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) and the Coalition for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE) have filed suit in the District of Columbia Federal Court against the White House Over the "Sounds fishy, spy on your neighbor and send an email" program which drew fire last month.

Named in the suit are The Executive Office of the President, The White House Office of Health Care Reform and its director Nancy-Ann Deparle, and Macon Phillips, White House Director of New Media Click HERE to read the rest of "The White House Gets Sued for Its Fishy Email Program"

Shared via AddThis

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Taxpayers should not Pay for UAW Health Care Benefits


The Detroit News

One reason the public so distrusts the health care plan being considered by Congress is that so many troublesome details keep bubbling out of the massive legislation.

The latest example is the $10 billion taxpayers will be asked to shell out to prop up the United Auto Workers' retiree health insurance program.

That provision is tucked deep into the bill passed by the House.

In effect, it would ask every taxpayer, regardless of whether they'll have health insurance coverage themselves after they retire -- and most won't -- to chip in to maintain the UAW's coverage, which even after the union's givebacks is still better than what the average American worker receives.

The helping hand is a recognition by Congress that the union's volunteer employee benefit association, or VEBA, can't possibly stay solvent if it is asked to cover all of the union workers taking early buyouts from the Detroit automakers.

So the union's supporters added language to the House's gargantuan health care bill that requires the federal government to pick up most of the cost of catastrophic claims for union retirees age 55 to 64.

The biggest beneficiary would be the UAW, which got $60 billion from the Big Three in exchange for taking on the obligation for retiree health care.

But the bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler....to continue reading the article Click HERE

Don't Mess With Texas Obama!

LUBBOCK — A former art teacher used his West Texas field to carve out a protest about the Obama administration's proposed overhaul of the health care system.

Sam Bates recently plowed some weeds and left behind the message “Say no to Obama!” that's best viewed from the air.

Bates said he had some “free time” and wanted to offer his unhappiness with what's been going on in Washington.

“This is a sign of frustration,” Bates told KCBD-TV on Monday.

“You know, it's not so much Obama, but just some of the things he's done recently with the health bill he's trying to pass through, and it's just as much Republican and Democrats fault in the House and the Senate that won't stand up to some of the things. That's basically what's frustrated me,” Bates said.

The Obama administration has been pushing its proposal to reshape the $2.5 trillion health system.
To read the rest of the article Click HERE

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

ObamaCare and me


By Zane F Pollard, MD

Shared via AddThis

I have been sitting quietly on the sidelines watching all of this national debate on healthcare. It is time for me to bring some clarity to the table by explaining many of the problems from the perspective of a doctor.

First off, the government has involved very few of us physicians in the healthcare debate. While the American Medical Association has come out in favor of the plan, it is vital to remember that the AMA only represents 17% of the American physician workforce.

I have taken care of Medicaid patients for 35 years while representing the only pediatric ophthalmology group left in Atlanta, Georgia that accepts Medicaid....to read the rest of the article click HERE

Monday, August 24, 2009

Shattered Lives: One Hundred Victims of Government Health Care


The National Center for Public Policy Research

"...Shattered Lives will educate you, the American public, to the horror of government-managed health care where it exists today.

In this book are documented stories from Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Japan, Australia and elsewhere - countries in which citizens literally die waiting for health services. Among other horrifying takes, you will cringe over tales of expectant mothers unable to find an available hospital bed, elderly patients denied routine cataract surgery and people in agony who resorted to do-it-yourself dentistry.


YOU MAY DOWNLOAD,PRINT OR E-MAIL this pre-publication copy of Shattered Lives: 100 Victims of Government Health Care to your computer BY CLICKING ON "More"

Shattered Lives

These tragic stories warn us that turning more of our health care decisions over to the government is sure to bring us nothing but pain."
-Mark R. Levin, Host, The Mark Levin Show
Author, Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto

"Anyone who believes that nationalized health care equals quality health care needs to read these real-life horror stories of people denied care or forced to wait months for urgently-needed medical treatment because they live in countries with nationalized health care."
-- Congressman Ron Paul, M.D. (R-TX)

"On a good day the practice of medicine is demanding and difficult. A bad day can range from frustrating to terrifying. An active clinical practice deals with cases that run the spectrum of complex to impossible-yet all the while physicians and nurses put forth their best efforts as is appropriate to their ability. To take this already demanding lifestyle and further complicate it by insensitive government control and regime insults the integrity of every provider-and places the patient in even greater peril. This is a powerful book, and one that should be regarded and read by every elected official who believes he or she has the gift to change medical practice to suit the whim of the government."
-- Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX)

"Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans are satisfied with the quality of the health care they receive. "Shattered Lives" provides strong evidence that the more we turn over health care decisions to the government, the less satisfied we will be."
-- Paul Mirengoff
Power Line Blog

"While in most parts of the world private health care is an option, government in my native Canada holds a death grip. Government there legally forbids millions of people in most parts of Canada from buying private health care. Some of them choose to get their health care outside Canada. Shattered Lives tells the stories of several of these health care refugees and warns why a centralized, government-managed approach is how not to fix health care in America-or anywhere else."
-- David R. Henderson
Research Fellow, Hoover Institution

"Shattered Lives shows the ugly realities of statist medicine its acolytes don't want you to know. I applaud The National Center for warning the American people that a government takeover, whether slow or accelerated, is not the answer for improving our health care system."
-- Tom Blumer
BizzyBlog, NewsBusters.org

"Shattered Lives provides a sharp reminder that government mismanagement of health care has high human costs not only in a developing country like South Africa, but in rich countries too. This is because it's not just about money, but incentives and choice."
-- Jack Bloom, MPL
Health Spokesman, Democratic Alliance Party
Gauteng Provincial Legislature, South Africa

Saturday, August 22, 2009

COUNTER STRIKE!



As many of you know, John Mackey, CEO of the national chain store Whole Foods. Last week, The CEO’s Blog Mr. Mackey wrote an op-ed saying we need health care reform but not Obama “Care”

The Liberals reaction was to boycott Whole Foods, which is their right to do so. It's also our right to support Whole Foods by patronized their stores!

To find a store their you got to the Web site
HERE
At the top you will see Find your store: where you can put it your zip code
If there is not a store near you, sign up for the Newsletter HERE:

Unfortunately there are no Whole Food stores in my locale and I am a “health food junkie” however I did sign up for the Newsletter. I receive my first one and there are great ideas for tasty healthy foods and yummy recipes.

You may also Follow Whole Foods on Twitter HERE

And on Face Book HERE

And yes, but of course… you can even join a
“I SUPPORT MR. JOHN MACKEY and WHOLE FOODS, INC.
on Face Book

And even if you are not presently an aficionado of Health Foods, you may just decide to try that Soy Burger and try out a recipe or two..and who knows YOU too may just become a “health food junkie”

Ahhh.. the potential benefits of a good counter strike ;-)

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

AFTER ACTION REPORT: Committe Hearings on SCR 4, SR 17, HCR 6, SR 73

It was a packed room Tuesday for a Judiciary Committee hearing on SR17, SCR 4, and SR 73 (Patterson) A resolution to affirm Michigan's sovereignty under the 10th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not enumerated and granted to the federal government.

SCR 4 (Patterson) A concurrent resolution to affirm Michigan's sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not enumerated and granted to the federal government.

Patriots from Campaign for Liberty of Wayne and Livingston County were there as well as yours truly representing Grassroots in Michigan, representatives from Tea Party of West Michigan as well as others from across the state came to give testimony and support of the resolutions.

In addition Congressman Pete Hoekstra gave testimony for SR 73 "a resolution to memorialize the United States Congress to make certain intelligence information regarding Guantanamo Bay detention camp detainees available to the Governor and Michigan State Legislature."

In regards to with whether the Standish maximum security prison should house Guantanamo Bay prisoners. and Senator Tom George submitted written testimony and implored Governor Granholm to keep discussions open with the federal government.

Both Hoekstra and George are Republican candidates for governor. Congressman Pete Hoekstra the ranking Republican on the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, says the state doesn't know enough about Guantanamo prisoners to make an informed decision and the danger they would impose on not just Standish but to the state. Additionally, the promise of jobs for Standish may be a moot point as the prison would be a Federal facility with Federal employees already employed by the Federal government. Senator Bruce Patterson (a Republican candidate for Attorney General) made the wry observation that Michigan has spend millions on its “Pure Michigan” campaign to bring others to the state and a prison for terrorists hardly fits the criteria for enticing people to Michigan. Here, here Senator!

The “unusual Liberal suspects” voiced their usual Liberal mantra of obfuscation and lack of knowledge.

Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing, the committee's minority vice chair, took a more neutral stance saying state officials need all the facts and realize while Hoekstra's views are based on experience they are only opinions.
"I would hope that before we say yes or no we would have a full understanding of what to expect," Whitmer said.

Hmmm let’s see Pete Hoekstra, the ranking GOP member of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, “opinions” are pretty solid Ms Whitmer since he is privy to information that you are not and THAT is what SR 73 was about, obtaining more information.

Meanwhile downstairs, the Transportation Committee was hearing testimony on passage of House Concurrent Resolution No. 6.(Opsommer)

A concurrent resolution to memorialize the President, the Congress, and the Department of Homeland Security of the United States to change requirements, agreements, and memorandums of understanding relating to the creation of Enhanced Drivers Licenses.

Whereas, The Department of Homeland Security is currently requiring that any state that wishes to create an Enhanced Drivers License (EDL) as a result of passage of the federal Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) must create an EDL that incorporates what the federal government refers to as "facilitative technology." This ambiguous term has been defined in practice to mean the incorporation of unencrypted, long-range, radio-wave computer chip technology that allows for a unique citizen identification number that can be passively read through wallets, purses, doors, and cars without the owner's knowledge; and

Whereas, After Michigan made several attempts to create an EDL that would not need this technology, it became clear that the Department of Homeland Security would only allow Michigan the option to voluntarily abandon the entire EDL program, jeopardizing the state's economy. The WHTI's only true mandate was that Americans needed to prove their citizenship in order to reenter into the United States. Facilitative technology was never required by Congress, places technology contracts over security, and is an example of departmental overreach and encroachment onto states' rights; and

Whereas, The driver license information of Michigan citizens would be shared with the governments of Canada and Mexico via the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) and EDL agreements. However, how it would be shared is ambiguous and needs to be defined so that we can ensure that potential corruption in foreign bureaucracies does not result in identity theft or other security concerns for U.S. citizens. There is currently little congressional oversight of the SPP, again placing a single department’s bureaucracy largely in charge of rules and regulations that significantly impact the states and their citizens; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That we memorialize the President, the Congress, and the Department of Homeland Security of the United States to change requirements, agreements, and memorandums of understanding relating to the creation of Enhanced Drivers Licenses to help address these concerns. We formally call for the Department of Homeland Security to change its rules so that EDLs can be created that do not need to contain what it characterizes as "facilitative technology"; and be it further

Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Department of Homeland Security, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.

As many folks didn’t know about the Committee Meeting on HCR 6, I was busy handing out comment cards for passage of HCR 6 and running the filled out cards down to the Transportation Committee room.

After testimony and a vote, SR17, SCR 4, HCR 6 and SR 73 were all voted out of committee!

The testimony about Gitmo prisoners and HCR 6 dovetailed with the need for Michigan to assert her 10th Amendment sovereignty and as a means of breaking unconstitutional federal control over the States by basically bribing with money or the withholding of Federal money, which as one gentlemen from Campaign form Liberty pointed out the Federal government took from the states, to go in a direction that we can not or should not properly go. We Michiganders, the citizens who live here, work here, raise our families here and love Michigan are the best arbitrators to decide what is best for us and our state, not people in a far-away city called Washington D.C. and we are Constitutionally entitled to do so!

A good day for Michigan…onward…just in as of today SR 73 was ADOPTED AS SUBSTITUTED S-1 in the Senate

Monday, August 17, 2009

*ACTION ALERT* ATTEND THE STATE SOVEREIGNTY BILLS COMMITTEE MEETING



WE WANT THIS BILL OUT OF COMMITTEE AND PASSED!

This Event is listed on Grassroots in Michigan

Here is what we need to do:

ATTEND the Committee (Judiciary) Meeting for the two 10th Amendment State Sovereignty Bills to show support. This is a public meeting so we need as many to attend as possible. Event is listed on Grassroots in Michigan, This TUESDAY 1:00pm Aug. 18th Room 210 Farum Bldg. 125 W. Allegan Street Lansing, MI 48933
Phone: Clerk Phone 373-6920

You can also speak by filing out a card when arriving. Be polite and articulate

SR 17 (Patterson) A resolution to affirm Michigan's sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not enumerated and granted to the federal government.

SCR 4 (Patterson) A concurrent resolution to affirm Michigan's sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not enumerated and granted to the federal government.


Here are links to the bills:

SR0017

SCR-0004


If you CANNOT ATTEND:

CALL OR FAX COMMITTEE MEMBERS letting them know you support the resolutions:

SAMPLE FAX HERE

Judicary Committee Members:

Senators:

Wayne Kuipers (R) (Chairman) Phone: Toll-Free 877-584-7377 Fax: 517-373-2751
E-Mail: senkuipers@senate.michigan.gov

Alan Cropsey (R) (ViceChair) Phone: Toll-Free 866-305-2133 Fax: 517-373-8661
E-Mail senacropsey@senate.michigan.gov

Alan Sanborn (R) Phone: Toll Free 888-353-2526 Fax: 517-373-5958
E-Mail senasanborn@senate.michigan.gov

Bruce Patterson (R) (Bill Sponser) Phone Toll Free 866-262-7307 Fax: 517-373-9228
E-Mail senbpatterson@senate.michigan.gov

Tony Stamas (R) Phone Toll Free 866-305-2136 Fax: 517-373-2678
E-Mail ofcstamas@senate.michigan.gov

Gretchen Whitmer (D) (M-VC) Phone: 517-373-1734 Fax: 517-373-5397
sengwhitmer@senate.michigan.gov

Hansen Clarke (D) Phone: Toll Free 877-252-7537 Fax: 517-373-9320
E-Mail senclarke@senate.michigan.gov

Raymond Basham (D) Phone: 517-373-7800 Fax: 517-9310
E-Mail senrbasham@senate.michigan.gov

We have three Republican Senators running for office that should be contacted Bruce Patterson who sponsored the resolutions running for Attorney General, Michelle McMannus and Cameron Brown both running for Secretary of State. Their information including information for both House and Senate to CALL OR FAX letting them know you support the resolutions can be found HERE

Write letters to the editors of all the Michigan media outlets. You can find contact info here http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Michigan_media or here http://www.mondotimes.com/1/world/us/22.

37 states have created or are creating 54 legislative bills/resolutions that re-assert States' Rights in an attempt to stop the Federal Government's power grab and to return to the principles of Freedom as defined in the Constitution.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Good Dog!

I am an animal lover, especially dogs and us dog 'parents" know that sometimes the wisdom of our "furry kids" exceeds those of us humans.

This dog is obviously much smarter than our own Governor Jennifer Granholm who would take all the Federal strings attached so called "stimulus" bill money and other states "stimulus" money too!

Bad Jennifer, bad!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

While Focused on Socialized Medicine,Al Gore Builds Grassroots Army for Cap-N-Trade



Keep your friends close but your enemies closer..Sun Tzu (400 B.C.), author of On the Art of War

Its natural that most people tend to socialize and build alliances and coalitions with those who have similiar views with their own. However, when fighting a war, and make no doubt, we are in a war with those who wish to replace our Republic with another form of government that is the antheisis of a Democratic Republic, we need to know the enemey.

We need to be monitoring ,as unplesant as it can be, reading what they read,watching their blogs, groups, following them on social networking sites, like Twitter etc, so that we may be better equipped for the battle.

In that vein and with a little help from my friend Eileen,... "Just a heads up -- maybe you know this, but Al Gore's political committee for climate change has a VERY organized effort going on right now at the grassroots level state by state, including hiring field staff (I met one of them) for Cong. Districts to find volunteers/writers, etc. to push the Senate to vote on Cap and Trade in September. (Gore’s two groups—the Alliance for Climate Protection and The Climate Project—are putting thousands of “boots on the ground” in key congressional districts around the country to help build momentum for climate legislation.

In order to win this struggle, we have to go to the constituents of the Congress,” Gore told Grist recently. “Just laying the facts on the table and playing an inside-the-Beltway game is not going to do it on this issue. We have to win the feelings and opinions of voters in the country as a whole ... We have to go to the grassroots.”)

We never know when that vote will get pushed in light of the health care issue--but the fact that GORE is this organized tells me they may try and push it through... you have a great grassroots networks so I wanted you to be aware ---

Wouldn't it be just like Obama to push this while everyone else is focused on the Healthcare debate..."

Yes Eileen, it certainly would!



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Monday, August 3, 2009

*ACTION ALERT* Health Care Townhall with Congressman John Dingel (D)



Thursday, August 6

6:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Contact: Aletheia Henry

313-791-2707

Romulus Athletic Center
35765 Northline Rd
734-942-2223
Romulus,MI


Dingell is a co-sponser of H.R.3200 - America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 and votes along party lines 98% of the time according to Open Congress




Depending on the coverage be prepared for a full house, bring signs to protest outside if you are denied entry